Eating Sushi

[From Mass Email]

This is a true case of a Japanese man from Gifu Prefecture who complains incessantly about a persistent headache. Mr. Shota Fujiwara loves his sashimi and sushi very much to the extent of trying to get them as “alive and fresh” as can be for his insatiable appetite.

He develops a severe headache for the past 3 years and has put it off as migraine and stress from work. It was only when he started losing his psychomotor skills that he seeks medical help. A brain scan and x-ray reveals little however. But upon closer inspection by a specialist on his scalp, the doctor noticed small movements beneath his skin. It was then that the doctor did a local anesthetic to his scalp and discovered the cause when tiny worms crawled out. A major surgery was thus immediately called for and the extent of the infestation was horrific. See the attached pictures to the scene that one thought only a movie could produce. [The pictures are terribly disgusting :shock: , you wouldn’t want to see them.]

Remember, tapeworms and roundworms and their eggs which abound in all fishes fresh or saltwater can only be killed by thorough cooking and/or freezing the fish to between 4 deg C and 0 deg C. The eggs of these parasites can only be killed if it is cooked or frozen to the said temperatures for a week or more. Think twice about that raw dish next time…or you might get a headache.

That wasn’t an insolated incident, extracts from http://www.soton.ac.uk/~ceb/Diagnosis/Vol7.htm that mention sushi in case you don’t want to see the pictures:

[quote]Anisakiasis is a collective name for infections belonging to the genera of nematodes, Anisakis, Phokanema, Tarranova and Contracaecum. The adult worms from the many species belonging to this family, Anisakidae, occur in various sea mammals, seals, dolphins, porpoises and whales, the larvae can cause a serious zoonosis, anisakiasis, in man. Anisakiasis was first reported in the Netherlands in 1960 and since then cases have been reported from Japan, North America, Canada, Chile and the United Kingdom with the increase in popularity of

Hey, lay off the sushi joints. I like 'em. Never been sick once in 153 years on Earth. Sashimi, wasabi, just use a lot of wasabi and you will be okay. What are you anti-Japanese now?

Well, yeh, I did get sick for 3 days two months ago from some street sushi stand at the local night marche that puked me to hell, but what the hell…

Well I personally eat only those cooked, like shrimps and eel varieties, as well as California rolls, not raw slice such as salmon.