There is something that is tasty, but not healthy, and there is something that can kill you - two big differences. And if you want to stay in good health for as long as possible, exclude from the diet what is listed in our top 10 the most poisonous foods in the world.
10. The brain of a monkey
Remember the scene from the movie “Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom”, where the heroes are served chilled monkey brains? As it turned out, this exotic dish can reward you with a deadly disease. Monkey brains can be a source of infection leading to Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease. It is fatal in 85% of cases, even if it is mild. Here are a set of key symptoms:
- epileptic seizures;
- depression, and other mental disorders;
- blindness;
- loss of ability to speak and understand a language;
- difficulty swallowing;
- chronic pain.
There is no known treatment or at least an opportunity to slow down the course of Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease.
9. Rhubarb
This plant can be used to make a delicious pudding or cake, but if you eat the wrong part of rhubarb, this may be your last meal.
Rhubarb leaves contain chemicals called oxalates. When ingested, they can cause breathing difficulties, cramps, kidney failure, and even death. Oxalates are also found in rhubarb stalks, albeit in small quantities.
8. Sannakchi
This deadly gastronomic gourmet comes from Korea. A live octopus is cut into pieces, seasoned with sesame oil, sprinkled with sesame seeds and served on the table. But even in this state, the octopus is still dangerous. His suction cups may stick to your throat and mouth, which will cause choking. There are cases when people who have eaten sannakchi suffocated.
7. Aki
This is the "national" fruit of Jamaica. In its immature form, it can in no way be attributed to the most useful fruits, due to the content of hypoglycine. This is the poison that causes what is called the "Jamaican vomiting disease." As soon as the fruit ripens, it becomes safe. Therefore, if you are in Jamaica, eat the yellow fruits of Aki, and never eat seeds, they are always toxic.
6. Cashew
“What nonsense! I ate cashews a hundred times and nothing happened, ”the reader may exclaim. And it will be right. Nothing happened because the toxic substances - cashew acid (similar in action to ivy poison) and cardol - are not in the nut itself, but in the shell surrounding it.
To make the product safe to eat, cashews are first removed from the shell, then softened in water, and then dried to remove the dangerous acid. But this must be done at a sufficiently high temperature of 125 °, or traces of poison can remain on the roasted nuts.
And “raw” cashews is a marketing ploy, all these delicious nuts are steamed before being sold.
5. Bloody mollusks
In fifth place in the selection of deadly foods is food that is popular in Asian countries. These seafood got its name due to the high hemoglobin content. Because of him, it seems that the mollusks are bleeding.
Bloody mollusks can carry blood diseases such as hepatitis A, typhoid fever and dysentery. This is because they live in low oxygen conditions, where many viruses and bacteria thrive.
In 1988, a hepatitis A epidemic broke out in Shanghai because of the consumption of bloody mollusks. Over 300 thousand people were infected, and 30 people died, according to the Shanghai Daily.
4. Hakarl
So called jerky shark meat - one of the traditional dishes of Iceland. Better not try this ancient Viking food because shark meat contains poisons such as trimethylamine oxide and uric acid.
Hakarl preparation includes cutting a shark and placing pieces in containers with gravel and holes in the walls. There, pieces of shark are kept for a couple of months so that the poisons flow out of the carcass along with the liquids. Then they “ripen” in the open air for another 2 to 4 months. However, this does not always work and then the eater is waiting for all the "charms" of severe poisoning.
3. Fisih
In Egypt, the Nile River has always been a source of life. But it was also the source of the weekly “crop” of rotting fish when the flood waters receded. Some smart man, even in the time of the pharaohs, put in his mind the fish and the magic of the flood season. So the holiday Shem al-Nissim appeared, which translates as "the smell of the breeze."
Today, the Egyptians also eat fissih - a dish of fermented fish. Nobody likes this dish, but tradition is tradition. To prepare fisikha, mullet is dried in the sun and placed in a vessel with salt water for a month and a half. Technically, salt prevents rotting, but the fish stays moist and stinks. However, the main problem is not this, but botulism. If there is not enough salt or the fish has already begun to rot, the pathogenic bacteria begin their own holiday. Botulinum toxin is a nerve toxin that paralyzes muscles. Symptoms of botulism are similar to a stroke.
And botulinum toxin in a very low concentration is injected into people's faces to make them look younger. This procedure is called Botox.
2. Kasu Marz
This is the most unusual national dish in Sardinia and at the same time the most dangerous cheese in the world. They make it from ordinary pecorino cheese, leading to the stage of decay. Cheese flies lay their eggs in a “rotten cheese” (its name is translated), and larvae hatch from these eggs. Their task is to decompose the cheese, which becomes very soft. And then it’s up to the people who dare to try casu marza.
To remove larvae from cheese before eating is a matter of taste. But it’s best to cover the cheese with your hand before biting it: worried larvae can jump up to 15 centimeters. However, the larva caught in the eye is not the worst thing that can happen. Some larvae of a cheese fly do not die once inside a person. They are such tenacious creatures that gastric juice does not always affect them. When you digest rotten cheese, which the larvae used to call home, they start looking for a new place to live. And since they are within you, guess what they will choose? This, of course, is strange when the larvae are in your throat, but it is definitely worse when they crawl along the intestinal walls.
1. Fugu
Name the most dangerous delicacy in the world translates as "river pig." But you will not get bacon from this pig; instead, puffer (one of the representatives of the large family of pufferfish) contains a large amount of tetrodotoxin. This powerful neurotoxin is used by fish during their protection against predators. And after death - as a revenge on the people who wanted to eat it.
Tetrodotoxin acts on the human nervous system and inhibits the transmission of nerve impulses. First, tingling appears in the mouth, then dizziness, nausea and headache come. It becomes difficult to breathe. Then your muscles begin to tighten when you lose control of your entire body, eventually becoming completely paralyzed. In this case, you do not lose consciousness, therefore, you know exactly what is happening, up to the moment when the neurotoxin causes cardiac arrest and ceases functioning of the lungs.
With the right cooking method, which a specially trained, certified chef knows, you can safely eat a puffer dish. But if a piece of flesh containing tetrodotoxin remains during cooking, this is probably your last meal. Particularly toxic are the liver, caviar and milk. Improperly prepared puffer fish kills, according to various sources, from 30 to 50 people a year. That is why we put her at the head of the ranking of the most dangerous products on Earth.
