Crayfish is "very dirty" and eating it will cause rhabdomyolysis. Is it credible?

Along with summer comes people's endless enthusiasm for late night snacks. As a popular late night snack, crayfish has also captured people's taste buds with its various flavors. Garlic, spicy, iced... all kinds of flavors are spread in the streets and alleys of the city. Behind the popularity of crayfish, there are also many controversies about crayfish, such as excessive heavy metals, carrying many parasites, and eating crayfish will cause rhabdomyolysis syndrome. So, are these claims credible?

The scientific name of crayfish is Procambarus clarkii, also known as red crayfish or freshwater crayfish. It has outstanding advantages, high protein content, soft meat, and rich in magnesium, zinc, iodine, selenium and other trace elements. Compared with ordinary meat, the amino acid composition of crayfish meat is superior, containing 8 essential amino acids required by the human body, a large proportion of polyunsaturated fatty acids in the fatty acids it contains, and a high content of fat-soluble vitamins such as vitamin A, D, and K.

Do crayfish really carry parasites?

The answer to this question is: Really. For most aquatic products, the possibility of carrying parasites is not low. Fish, shrimp, shellfish, bullfrogs, etc. that are common on people's daily tables are all parasitic hazards when eaten raw - suffering from human parasitic diseases. Crayfish is no exception. But there is no need to give up on crayfish because of the parasite problem, because relevant studies have shown that the parasites carried by crayfish include leeches, ciliates, schizonts (tapeworm larvae), tapeworms and various flukes, which are similar to the parasites that other fish and shrimp may carry. Take the schizont as an example, which people are afraid of. It parasitizes the human body and can occur in organs and parts other than bones. Therefore, when eating crayfish, it must be fully cooked.

Does crayfish contain excessive heavy metals?

Regarding this rumor, we must first understand that "heavy metals" and "heavy metals exceeding the standard" cannot be discussed in the same breath. These are two concepts. The crayfish that meet the sales standards on the market are basically farmed in clear water. Crayfish farmed in clear water grow in a healthy environment, and it is extremely rare for heavy metals to exceed the standard. "Sewage crayfish" with excessive heavy metals and below the sanitary standards do exist, so we need to distinguish when purchasing and eating them. However, it is worth noting that the heavy metals in crayfish are mainly concentrated in the shell and head, and the heavy metals in the shell will decrease as the crayfish sheds its shell during growth. However, since the liver and gills of crayfish are located in the head, it is very easy to accumulate heavy metals, so it is not recommended to eat the head of crayfish.

Will you get rhabdomyolysis syndrome after eating crayfish?

Rhabdomyolysis syndrome, also known as Haff disease, is a widespread necrosis of skeletal muscle cells caused by intense or excessive exercise, prolonged muscle crush injury, muscle ischemia caused by arterial obstruction, excessive medication, epileptic seizures, etc. The contents of necrotic muscle cells and some biological substances generated after their decomposition are directly released into the blood. Specific manifestations include muscle pain, fatigue, muscle cramps, swelling, soy sauce-colored urine, electrolyte imbalance, kidney damage, kidney failure, etc.

In 1924, more than 1,000 patients suffered from rhabdomyolysis on the Baltic coast of Haff. There are also many cases in my country caused by eating crayfish. Although its pathogenesis is not clear at present. However, doctors have found in clinical observation that these patients have some common characteristics: a history of eating seafood within 24 hours before the onset of the disease, fatigue or muscle aches without cause, nausea, vomiting, abdominal pain, and soy sauce-colored urine. In many news reports, we will see words such as "low back pain after eating crayfish, the doctor judged it to be rhabdomyolysis." At present, we don't have to panic too much about rhabdomyolysis. Its incidence rate is low, the symptoms are mild, and it recovers quickly after timely treatment. The symptoms usually subside in 2 to 3 days and rarely endanger life. A doctor explained: Generally, those with mild symptoms do not need special treatment. In the early stage, they only need to drink a lot of water or infusion, supplement electrolytes, and take alkaline drugs such as sodium bicarbonate (baking soda) when necessary. It can be effectively relieved by accelerating urination and resting in bed.

Regarding the safety of crayfish, heavy metals, parasites, and rhabdomyolysis are the biggest labels currently lingering on them. So, how can we ensure that the crayfish we eat are both delicious and safe? First of all, we need to work hard on the selection. When choosing lobsters, the best choice is the live shrimp with a bright red and clean back, neat white hair on the abdomen and claws, a stiff body, and complete tentacles. Secondly, it takes effort to clean the lobster before cooking. Use a brush to clean the whole body of the lobster, focusing on cleaning the lobster's abdomen and feet. After cleaning the lobster, you also need to remove the unclean organs in the lobster's body and remove the stomach sac at one-third of the shrimp's head. It is also important to note here that you can wear silicone gloves when handling lobsters to avoid being hurt by the pliers.

In short, although crayfish are delicious, some crayfish on the market are of unknown origin, and there are indeed problems such as heavy metal (lead, mercury, arsenic, cadmium) pollution, pathogenic bacteria (Salmonella, Staphylococcus aureus, Vibrio parahaemolyticus, Pseudomonas aeruginosa) pollution, parasite (lung fluke) pollution, shrimp washing powder (oxalic acid, sulfite, nitrite, citric acid) related pollution. This also reminds consumers to be careful when eating crayfish and avoid buying "dirty water crayfish" without safety guarantees. At the same time, crayfish is a high-protein, low-fat food that is rich in purine nucleotides. Eating more can easily induce gout, so it is not advisable to eat more than 500 grams at a time. Crayfish is also a food that is prone to allergies, and people with allergic constitutions should also eat it with caution. Although crayfish is good, food safety cannot be forgotten, and you can't be greedy.