Is Sushi/Sashimi really healthy, or an Epidemic waiting to happen?

I was shocked to see a Discovery series last night titled "Monster Inside Me".
I'm quite familiar with internal parasites, and little of that "human wildlife" shocks me anymore.
However, the agony of this poor woman who got a parasite meant for marine mammals really shocked me.
The parasitic worm shares a life-cycle with seals and salmon.
The fish and seals are fine with it - it harmlessly visits and exits their bodies.
However, it can enter humans through raw salmon.
In humans it can die trying to exit the gut, which causes a massive inflammation around the dead worm.

Now people, this is what I don't get.
In labs they took the worms and heated them and froze them, and then put them in water and lemon juice (sushi style).
The worms die with freezing and heating over 140 degrees (I think).
But they thrive in lemon juice and water.
In fact, one can sometimes see them on the salmon sashimi, or feel them wriggle in the throat.

Yet, top chefs like Gordon Ramsey bad-mouth restaurants for serving frozen salmon!
Frozen salmon is much safer!

Maybe they are working with the medical industry to create new long-term pandemics.

www.dailymail.co.uk...

The worm is Anisakis:
www.allaboutworms.com...
Beware the fresh salmon.
It wriggles.

And there I made a point of eating it for the Omega oils.
Oh darn it.
But ours is frozen and caught in less polluted waters.

I thank you for this post. I do know which sushi I am going to stay from now. I do eat it often.

i saw that episode, and made me thankful that i only like my sushi well done

reply to post by MoosKept240

Yeah, and the worst is that it's a pretty chronic thing.
You won't notice it immediately.
It can be misdiagnosed or ignored because most doctors haven't suspected it, but that is changing fast.
Even if you stop eating the stuff now, you could have the effects later.

reply to post by halfoldman


Yeah when all the Tuna are over harvested,decimated,and auctioned off by a bunch of 2 legged freaks with chopsticks, I believe the extinction will be an "Epidemic." To topic, if you are eating raw Salmon, and you are
not either a stranded survivor in the wilderness, or a Grizzly Bear, you belong in the puzzle factory to begin with.

S&F

What about the Tuna in a can?
People feed it to their cats.
Maybe a different species, but how long will that last?

I think compared to Western diets Sushi sounded promising.
It was not fried or heated and therefore kept its essential oils and nutrients.
My panic attacks improved after eating sardines and sushi (maybe once a week).
The health potential is present - one does not have to be a freak to eat it.

people have been eating it for a very long time, hundreds/thousands? of years

and it's delicious

reply to post by watchitburn

Well, perhaps there's something in the environment making it more dangerous now?

Or maybe it becomes more risky when fish are caught close to seals? (Like the American coast when top chefs demand that everything must be fresh and wriggling.)

How common was (salmon) sushi really?
But hey, they also ate puffer-fish (Fugu) traditionally, despite annual casualties from the poison.

But what I don't understand - the Inuit ate raw seal, and whale, and fish
But maybe they froze it?
The low heart disease rate of the Inuit actually vindicated the Sushi craze.
Were they riddled with worms?

I am a sushi chef here in beautiful California and we are required to freeze all of our fish for 24 hours before we serve it. I have been eating sushi for 5 days a week for 12 years I have no bugs in my belly yet haha.

reply to post by thirdeyeflight

Good to hear that.


But Gordon Ramsey claims the fish must come straight from the market.
Or did I miss something?
Well, it obviously is happening, so not all restaurants are doing this.

Originally posted by halfoldman
reply to post by thirdeyeflight

 

Good to hear that.

But Gordon Ramsey claims the fish must come straight from the market.
Or did I miss something?
Well, it obviously is happening, so not all restaurants are doing this.

Conspiracy??

reply to post by thirdeyeflight

Maybe from him just hubris and ignorance.
But from the wider media and the way it makes us accept "opinion" from a spokes-person?
Evidence of total conspiracy and cultivated mental passivity.

Pretty simple rules can save you from this ever happening to you.

1. NEVER try to make your own sashimi, ie, going out in the woods, catching some salmon, and chopping it up and eating it raw.
2. ALWAYS eat sushi and sashimi at well known or recommended Japanese restaurants, the reason why it is expensive sometimes is because of the costs of snap freezing the fish, which kills these harmful parasites.


Sushi and Sashimi is incredibly healthy because it is typically not deep fried and all ingredients are fresh (as opposed to processed meats).

Also Fish meats are high in Omega-3 fatty acids and have lower cholesterol contents when compared to red meat.

Oooh, yum...
It looks so delicious, I'm almost willing to take the chance.
But Westerners forget - in some cuisines eating according to tradition has a calculated risk that is part of the thrill.
We can lessen that, but not negate it.
Not to vilify only Sushi or Ramsey - parasites can also be in salads, and people still get pork and beef parasites (however they are less harmful).
They say that the intestinal roundworms in China consume more glucose from rice than twice the population!

In any case, nice piece of salmon - yum.

Monsters Inside Me: Animal Planet version.
Items most likely to contain parasites:
animal.discovery.com...
Oh nooo - escargot?

From the above link, p.3:

4. SUSHI AND SASHIMI The world's oceans are teaming with delicious life forms. The problem is that many of those life forms are home to parasites. You can eliminate the risk of infection by simply cooking your seafood thoroughly. Alternately, you can freeze the fish for a week or cure it in saturated salt brine for five to seven days. Sadly, each of these techniques can leave sushi enthusiasts in the lurch. The whole point to sushi, after all, is to appreciate the taste and texture of fresh, raw seafood. The two problem worms to consider before dining on uncooked fruit of the sea are the Anisakidae nematode roundworms and the Diphyllobothrium tapeworm. Of these, the roundworm is the most common. If ingested, you might not even notice it or suffer any symptoms. However, the worm can "tickle" your throat on the way down, and if it bores into your stomach lining, it can cause severe abdominal inflammation and pain within an hour of ingestion. Luckily, these pesky parasites don't survive longer than 10 days in the human digestive track. The Diphyllobothrium tapeworm is common in salmon, as well as other saltwater fish that also frequent fresh water. These freeloaders can thrive in the human gut for years, causing abdominal pain, weakness, weight loss and anemia. Luckily, they can be eradicated through medical treatment. To avoid risking a mouthful of spicy nematode roll or tapeworm sashimi, stick to reputable restaurants that follow food safety guidelines. If you're still feeling a bit paranoid, ask whether the fish has been previously frozen or stick to the many sushi options that either involve cooked or vegetarian ingredients.

animal.discovery.com...

I suspect freezing for 24 hours is not a standard form of safety?
Seems there's more than one worm to worry about.

reply to post by halfoldman


Bear grills always takes a bite out of freshly caught salmon (freshwater) seconds after it comes out of the water - skin and all. Looks so good I wana try it. Is Bear grills risking it - or does it only apply to saltwater?

reply to post by byteshertz

I guess most salmon is ocean caught these days.
I've read a lot on the Klamath River and other rivers once rich with seasonal salmon to the native tribes that are now ruined.
I doubt a bear could infect a fish with a parasite or vice-versa simply with its teeth.
Parasite cycles usually concern feces and feeding.
In Africa I think we all have some round-worms.
Pigs are a part of rural toilet systems (they eat human crap) and lead to tapeworms.
The problem with raw ocean salmon is that the parasite gets totally lost in our complex "vegetarian" intestines.
I'm not an expert here either, and would also love more info.
But, the parasite would already be in the salmon when it reaches the rivers and the bears, so they are inconsequential.

But hey, some argue that specific worms in humans can cure allergies and asthma.
The theory goes that we evolved with parasites, and Western living has virtually wiped them out.
The part of the immune system that should fight the now absent worms then has nothing to do but turn on the body, leading to severe allergy epidemics.
Some even promote controversial worm infestations for allergy sufferers.
The results so far are astoundingly good.
However, the sushi worm leads to too many complications - nobody would promote that worm for humans.

reply to post by byteshertz

Just reviewing, what is a bear grill?
We don't have any bears in South Africa.
I'm not sure I understood.