There are worms in the herring only if it is damaged. Periodically, many people find them. Of course, most of them refuse to eat such a dish. Is it correct? Is it possible to become infected with helminthiasis by eating a piece of such a product? We will answer these and other questions in the article.
general information
Buying tasty and fatty salted fish, few people will think about the fact that worms in a herring are a fairly common occurrence. After all, such a product must go through a series of thorough checks before it reaches the store shelves. Unfortunately, far from always such verification is carried out by control bodies.
It is no secret to anyone that fish is very useful for the human body, as it is rich in minerals and vitamins. But in some cases, this product can easily turn into a source of serious danger. Experts say that worms found in a herring can be easily transmitted to humans.
Potentially about 20 different helminths can live in the pulp of the fish in question. So are all worms in a herring dangerous to humans?
Helminthiasis parasites
What if there are worms in the herring? Are such parasites dangerous to humans? Only experienced specialists can answer these questions.
If such a nuisance happened to you, we recommend that you contact not only the Rospotrebnadzor, but also a doctor.
According to the latter, most of the helminths found in fish products do not take root in the human body. But among them there are those that quite easily tolerate stomach acid, after which they penetrate the intestines, as well as other organs of the digestive system. Such parasites include the following: anisakides, cat fluke and broad ribbon. We will tell you about the harm that such worms do in the salty herring found right now.
Anisakides
After such a parasite enters the intestine, it seems to bite into its walls, which contributes to the occurrence of bleeding. Such a process is often accompanied by vomiting, acute abdominal pain and upset stool.
Symptoms that are manifested when infected with anisacidosis are similar to signs of the development of inflammation of the appendix. With the onset of the acute phase, even a fatal outcome is likely.
It should be specially noted that anisacid larvae die only at a temperature of more than 70 degrees. Therefore, in the process of smoking, such a parasite can easily survive.
Opisthorchiasis
What other worms in a herring are still dangerous to human health and life? Is it possible to eat such a low-quality product?
If any parasites are found, the fish in which they are found should be disposed of immediately. This is due to the fact that helminth can be found in such a product - cat fluke, which leads to the development of opisthorchiasis. The carrier of this parasite is usually carnivores. But in some cases, they can also settle in fish.
The helminths in question affect the bile ducts and bladder, as well as the liver, into which they enter through the duodenum.
Diphyllobothriasis
Infection with such a disease occurs due to insufficiently careful processing of the fish product. The causative agent of this disease is a worm - a broad tape. Its length can reach 25 meters.
Among the obvious clinical symptoms of diphyllobothriasis are loss of appetite, general weakness, nausea, and abdominal pain. Very often, against the background of such a disease, a person develops anemia.
As you can see, only certain worms in the herring (photo, the name of the parasites were indicated above) pose a rather serious danger. Therefore, when purchasing a fish product in a store, you should be especially vigilant.
How to detect the presence of helminths in fish?
Experts report that there are several signs by which it is possible by the appearance of the fish to determine whether it contains life-threatening parasites or not.
First of all, you need to pay attention to the pupils and pulp of the product. If the first ones are cloudy, and with pressure on the second a remaining cavity forms, then you should not buy such a herring.
Also, the unpleasant odor, unnaturally swollen abdomen and the dark marshy color of the gills speaks of the corruption of the fish.
You can identify infected fish in the process of its preparation. For example, a broth made from herring with parasites is cloudy and without a greasy film. By the way, instead of the latter, a specific kind of flakes float to the surface of the water.
What to do when infected with helminths?
If symptoms occur that indicate the likelihood of developing helminthiasis, you should immediately consult a doctor.
Experts say that when anisizide enters the human body, their incubation period is about 1-2 weeks. After this time, the disease begins to manifest itself intensely. To detect the presence of parasites in the body, you should pass all the necessary tests. By the way, helminth larvae can be found even in the vomit and feces of the patient.
Also, for the diagnosis of the patient, the procedure of FGDS is performed. In the process of such a thorough examination of the internal organs, a specialist can quite easily detect erosion in the places of introduction of the worms, bleeding and the larvae themselves.
Helminthiasis treatment
Now you know the danger of worms in a herring. Is it possible to eat (a photo of parasites presented in this article) such a product? We also answered this question above.
If the unpleasant diagnosis is still confirmed, then treatment should be started immediately. As a rule, it includes taking anthelmintic drugs. In some cases, surgical intervention may be required.
After the course of treatment, the patient is established constant medical observation for a period of one year. At the same time, every 4-6 months it is imperative to carry out the FGDS procedure.
How to exclude a possible infection?
According to experts, the risk of infection with fish helminthiasis is eliminated very easily. As you know, almost all larvae and adults die as a result of prolonged heat treatment at temperatures from 100 degrees and above. However, it should be noted that in the case of herring, this task is rather complicated. What is the reason for this? The fact is that most dishes that are prepared using the above-mentioned fish involve the use of slightly smoked or slightly salted herring. And as mentioned above, with such a gentle treatment, the most dangerous parasites survive quite easily.
So how to protect yourself from helminthiasis? To do this, we recommend looking for other ways to deal with worms. Deep freezing of the product to a temperature of -25 degrees is ideal as them. Specialists report that such treatment kills all parasites contained in herring.
It is also necessary to remember that the presence of fish in concentrated saline makes worms more tenacious. Therefore, even the longest salting will not protect you from the danger of infection with fish worms.
To summarize
As you can see, the danger of contracting helminths by eating an ordinary salted or smoked herring is very real. Therefore, when choosing such a fish, special attention should be paid to its quality. If it seemed to you that the product is not the first freshness, then it is better not to take it. If the infection did occur, then you should immediately contact an experienced doctor.