Cuidado, gente, when it comes to eating raw foods like fish or undercooked meats. Oh, and if you are pregnant, just DON'T do it. Why? Because you don't want what happened to this poor man from Guangdong, China, to happen to you. This man loves sashimi, which is the raw fish cut into thin slices that you get at sushi places. Well, he ends up going to the doctor because his stomach is hurting and his skin is itching something bad. Guess what? His ENTIRE body was crawling with parasites. HORRIFYING!!! The x-ray shots below will freak you out!
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It is believed that sashimi the man ate was contaminated with tapeworms' eggs. Ingesting food contaminated with tapeworm eggs can lead to cysticercosis, which is when adult tapeworms enter the bloodstream. ACK! This is super dangerous and can even be fatal if the tapeworms reach the brain.
These x-rays are terrifying. This poor man's innards are infested with tapeworms, it's like getting eaten alive from the inside out. I really hope this was caught in time and that he gets better. Tapeworms are considered an infection and are usually treated with one dose of oral medication.
So how do you prevent something like this from happening to you? Well, tapeworm is caused by eating raw or under-cooked meats of animals that are infected. Someone who is infected and handling food can also pass it along. According to Medline Plus, a service of U.S. National Library of Medicine:
In the U.S., laws on feeding practices and the inspection of domestic food animals have largely eliminated tapeworms.
Avoiding raw meat and cooking meat well enough (to greater than 140 degrees F for 5 minutes) will prevent tapeworm infection. Freezing meats to -4 degrees F for 24 hours also kills tapeworm eggs. Good hygiene and hand washing after using the toilet will prevent self-infection in a person who is already infected with tapeworms.
I'm happy that I live in the U.S. where this isn't as big of an issue as in other places, but it does not hurt to be cautious, especially if you are pregnant.
Images via Thinkstock, hk.on.cc
