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Do you like to eat sushi or sashimi? Maybe some of you don't like Japanese food because you don't like raw food or maybe you are afraid of diseases that can be caused by raw food. However, can eating sushi and sashimi actually harm your health?
Parasites in raw food
The soft and smooth texture of raw fish that we can feel in sushi and sashimi is the main attraction for connoisseurs. As we already know, sushi and sashimi are foods that are served raw. Sushi itself is a roll of rice with a filling in the form of raw or uncooked fish (we will discuss about sushi with raw food stuffing). While sashimi is a thin slice of raw fish meat, especially salmon and tuna.
You need to know that all living things, including fish, have parasites (which are not from contamination). The parasite found in raw fish is usually Salmonella bacteria. This parasite will die if the food is cooked thoroughly. However, parasites can still be found in raw foods, such as raw fish in sushi and sashimi.
Most of these parasites cannot adapt to the human body. Some parasites in raw fish may be digested in the body without causing serious effects, but some can cause harmful effects to health, such as foodborne illness (foodborne disease) or food poisoning.
For many healthy people, eating a reasonable amount of raw fish or seafood may present a minor health risk. However, it does not rule out that it can cause food-borne diseases, which can potentially cause vomiting, diarrhea, stomach pain, and other symptoms.
What about sushi and sashimi, isn't it dangerous?
Some threats to watch out for when you eat sushi or sashimi, such as the fish may not be fresh, the fish may be rotten, or there may be bacteria in the fish. However, this can be detected before consumption because fish usually gives off an unpleasant odor. Fish that are already in this condition, of course, will be immediately removed.
However, there is still another bigger threat in raw fish, namely parasites, which are not easy to detect. To reduce these parasites, of course, raw fish served on sushi and sashimi has been processed in such a way before serving. Fish that are chosen to be used as sushi and sashimi, of course, must meet certain standards, so they are safe for consumption.
Fish used to make sushi and sashimi have typically been frozen at -20 ° C for seven days or frozen at -35 ° C for 15 hours. This freezing aims to kill parasites in the fish. So, as long as sushi and sashimi are prepared properly according to applicable food safety regulations, the risk of sushi and sashimi causing disease may be very small, making it safe to eat. However, this does not rule out if there are still very small amounts of harmful organisms in raw fish, even though they have gone through the freezing process.
In healthy people, eating raw fish, such as in sushi and sashimi, may not pose a dangerous risk. However, for people at high risk, eating raw fish can cause foodborne illness (foodborne disease), serious illness, maybe even life-threatening. People who are at high risk for developing the disease are those with a low immune system, people with lower stomach acidity, pregnant women, infants, children, and older adults. These people at high risk are not advised to eat raw fish in sushi or sashimi.
So, in general, eating sushi and sashimi in moderation often may not be harmful to healthy people. However, you still have to pay attention to the freshness of the fish, cleanliness, processing and serving of sushi and sashimi to avoid unwanted risks. Choose a restaurant that really applies food safety in serving sushi and sashimi.
For people who are at high risk, eating sushi and sashimi can pose a big health risk. We recommend that for those of you who are at high risk, eat fish that has been cooked at least 63 ° C for 15 seconds.
