werner@aecom.UUCP (Craig Werner) (11/04/86)
<<>>
As both a parasitologist and a sushi chef, I often get questions
from people who worry about the little nasties that might be lurking it
the raw fish that they are about to eat. What follows is a summary :
By and large, as long as one limits oneself to salt water fish,
one need not worry about parasites. One should not eat fresh water
fish raw. Avoid the temptation to make sushi from fish that you have
caught yourself, as parasites as probably the least of your worries.
Salmon is used for Sushi, but only after smoking, not raw.
The ingestion of raw salmon is associated with cases of the
parasite Diphyllobothria, the fish tapeworm.
Undercooked cod has been associated with phocanemea, as has
filet of haddock. (Phocanema is a roundworm).
The most common parasitic infection is Anisakis, another
roundworm, and it is generally associated with eating raw mackerel.
In both Phocanema and Anisakis, the parasite is unable to
colonize the human host, and after a few days of acute gastroenteritis,
the parasite is either coughed up or passed. It can also be removed
endoscopically by a doctor in a matter of minutes.
Finally, I should point out a much more common reason for
illness after eating raw food is bacteria. Particular among those
bacteria that live in salt water is Vibrio parahemolyticus (a cousin
of Vibrio cholera) but more mundane bacteria are usually involved.
I should note that the number of reported cases of parasite
infection secondary to ingestion of sushi numbers only 10-20 cases
per year, if that many.
References and a repost of an article from last year:
Chitwood, M. Nematodes of Medical Significance Found in Market Fish
Am J Trop Med Hyg 1970;19:599-602.
Chitwood M. Phocanema-type larval nematode coughed up by a boy in
California. Am J Trop Med Hyg 1975;24:710-711.
Ishizuka T, Ishizuka A, A case of Diphyllobothriasis due to eating masou-
sushi [letter]. Med J Australia 1986;145:114.
Goldmann, DR. Hold the Sushi! [letter]
JAMA 1985;253:2495-6.
The article:
Sushi found to harbor Parasites. (fr. American Medical News)
Kwizo Sugimachi, MD and colleagues at Kyushu U. cite 178 cases of
Anisakis larval infection resulting from uncooked fish in the 15 years between
1969 and 1984.
Raw Mackerel accounted for 87% of the cases.
All patients became ill within 12 hours after eating the fish.
All were treated successfully by endoscopically removing the larvae
and administering antacids. Otherwise the pain would have persisted for several
days until the larvae died.
Most of the US cases are a Phocanema-like larvae that is usually
coughed up. Most larvae, however, pass through the systen without causing
any distress.
Larvae in fish can be killed by smoking or cooking, and also by
freezing at -20C for three days (so much for fresh fish).
Oh, and one last thing: for those in the greater New York area, my
next sushi party will be Sat. Nov. 15, 9:00 pm, at my apartment. RSVP.
--
Craig Werner (MD/PhD '91)
!philabs!aecom!werner
(1935-14E Eastchester Rd., Bronx NY 10461, 212-931-2517)
"Knowing you, you're probably doing twice as much as is healthy for you."andrea@hp-sdd.HP.COM (Andrea K. Frankel) (11/06/86)
In article <576@aecom.UUCP> werner@aecom.UUCP (Craig Werner) writes: > Raw Mackerel accounted for 87% of the cases. Probably why my favorite sushi chef (commercial) marinates all mackerel before serving it. I have read that traditional chinese medicine considers both wasabi and ginger to be antihelminthic (i.e., kill off worms), which is why they are traditionally served with sushi. Do you know of any basis in Western medicine for why this might be true? Andrea Frankel, Hewlett-Packard (San Diego Division) (619) 592-4664 "every time that wheel goes round, bound to cover just a little more ground" ______________________________________________________________________________ UUCP : {hplabs|hp-pcd|hpfcla|hpda|noscvax|gould9|sdcsvax}!hp-sdd!andrea UUCP : {cbosgd|allegra|decvax|gatech|sun|tektronix}!hplabs!hp-sdd!andrea ARPA : hp-sdd!andrea@nosc.arpa CSNET : hp-sdd!andrea@hplabs.csnet USnail: 16399 W. Bernardo Drive, San Diego CA 92127-1899 USA
miller@loral.UUCP (BANISHED BRAZILIAN) (11/13/86)
Is fish prepared the "Ceviche" way also affected by this dilema ?.
BIG DAVE.
--
David P. Miller - Loral Instrumentation. / USUAL \
{sdcsvax,sdcc3} loral!miller \ DISCLAIMER /
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"Uma vez Flamengo, sempre Flamengo ...." ljm@dshovax.UUCP (lyle mcbroom) (11/16/86)
> Is fish prepared the "Ceviche" way also affected by this dilema ?. > > BIG DAVE. > -- > David P. Miller - Loral Instrumentation. / USUAL \ > {sdcsvax,sdcc3} loral!miller \ DISCLAIMER / I lived in Peru for two years (1973-75) and had the unfortunate luck to acquire a tape worm from ceviche (tenia saganata). I probably ate ceviche once a day, so contracting it only once in two years is not too bad :). Lyle McBroom Intel Corp. tektronix!omssw2!dshovax!ljm
ems@apple.UUCP (Mike Smith) (11/21/86)
In article <578@hp-sdd.HP.COM> andrea@hp-sdd.UUCP (Andrea K. Frankel) writes: >In article <576@aecom.UUCP> werner@aecom.UUCP (Craig Werner) writes: >> Raw Mackerel accounted for 87% of the cases. > >Probably why my favorite sushi chef (commercial) marinates all mackerel >before serving it. > >I have read that traditional chinese medicine considers both wasabi and >ginger to be antihelminthic (i.e., kill off worms), which is why they >are traditionally served with sushi. Do you know of any basis in >Western medicine for why this might be true? > And don't forget the Saki !!!! Surely nothing could live through being dredged in wasabi, wrapped in ginger, and having a hot saki bath ! :-) -- E. Michael Smith ...!sun!apple!ems 'If you can dream it, you can do it' Walt Disney This is the obligatory disclaimer of everything. (Including but not limited to: typos, spelling, diction, logic, and nuclear war)