[Health] Your sushi could have parasitic worms without you knowing

[lioneatszebra]

There's bad news if you like sushi
from Morning Ticker



An alarming new report claims that sushi has one big potential problem that you might not be aware of despite all of its benefits.

Sushi lovers, beware: scientists have just found out something about this food that should cause you great alarm if you eat it on a regular basis. Although it's been praised as an awesome food both because it is low in fat and high in protein, not to mention rich in Omega 3 fatty acids, a new report finds that there is a dangerous parasite lurking inside sometimes that is causing more problems than ever before.

The report, published in the medical journal BMJ Case Reports, discusses the case of a Portugal man who began experiencing stomach pain and then started vomiting and reported a high fever. Doctors determined that he had recently eaten sushi, and after an endoscopy, they found a parasite larvae that had attached itself to his stomach lining.

They diagnosed him with anisakiasis, which is caused by parasitic worms that can be found in sushi, and as the food rises in popularity, so do cases of this unpleasant disease.

The statement from BMJ is below.

An unseen hazard of eating raw or undercooked fish/seafood is on the rise in Western countries, where dishes, such as sushi, are becoming increasingly popular, warn doctors today in a.

The warning comes after they treated a 32 year old previously well man who had had severe upper gut (epigastric) pain, vomiting, and fever for a week.

A blood test indicated mild inflammation, and the area below his ribs was tender. But it was only when the man revealed that he had recently eaten sushi that the doctors suspected that he might have anisakiasis.

Anisakiasis is caused by eating raw or undercooked fish/seafood infected with nematode parasites of the species Anisakis.

Endoscopy–the insertion of a long tube with a camera on the end down the gullet and into the stomach–revealed the larva of a worm-like parasite firmly attached to an area of swollen and inflamed gut lining.

After the larva was removed with a special kind of net, the man's symptoms cleared up straight away. Laboratory analysis showed that the larva belonged to the species of Anisakis.

Most of the reported cases to date have been in Japan, where a raw fish diet is very common say the authors.

"However, it has been increasingly recognised in Western countries," they add, and advise clinicians to consider the condition in patients with pain, nausea, vomiting and other complications, such as bowel obstruction and bleeding, who have recently eaten raw or undercooked fish.