In this brief guide, we are going to answer the question “What happens if you eat expired fish?” With an in-depth analysis of “What type of food poisoning is caused by eating expired fish?”Moreover, we are going to discuss the causes and prevention of food poisoning.
What happens if you eat expired fish?
If you eat expired fish, it will make you sick. It results in food poisoning in your body.
What type of food poisoning is caused by eating expired fish?
There are two kinds of food poisonings that are usually caused by eating expired fish; ciguatera toxicity and scombroid poisoning.
The symptoms of ciguatera toxicity include;
- constipation
- nausea
- vomiting
- diarrhea
- Headaches
- muscle pains
- itchy
- tingly
- numb skin
- metallic taste in your mouth
- slipping out of teeth
- Inability to feel heat or cold
The symptoms of another type of toxicity which is called scombroid toxicity appear 20_30 mins after eating the fish.
Symptoms of scombroid toxicity are similar to the symptoms that appear in any person with an allergy.
How is it determined that someone has food poisoning?
Mostly if people have mild food poisoning, they recover from it within a few days at home even.
That’s why it is not even diagnosed.
But If you are suffering from acute food poisoning, you must go to your doctor to diagnose it.
To diagnose food poisoning, the doctor will ask you to do blood tests.
Or samples are collected to know which type of food poisoning you have and which bacteria are responsible for it so that it could be treated well.
What causes food poisoning?
Food poisoning is caused by eating food contaminated by bacteria viruses, parasites and other pathogens.
These all organisms grow very rapidly and cause
- nausea
- vomiting
- diarrhea
- abdominal cramps
- headache
- fever
- muscle aches
How can we prevent food poisoning from occurring?
You can prevent food poisoning from occurring by following the right sanitation process.
That’s why you should always wash your hands properly after eating;
- raw meat
- poultry
- fish
- shellfish
- eggs
- other potentially contaminated items
You should also protect your food from getting contaminated such as you should never place the cooked and uncooked food together in the fridge.
How to protect yourself from getting sick after eating fish?
If fish isn’t properly eaten,the biotoxins present in the fish can make you sick.
The amount of biotoxin present in any fish depends on the type of fish you are eating.
Always keep in mind the following things while eating fish to protect yourself from getting sick after eating fish;
- Always wash your hands thoroughly, if you have touched any seafood.
- You should avoid eating frozen or overcooked fish meat.
- Raw fish meat must be avoided to prevent illness.
How to buy healthy fish?
While buying the fish you should always keep in mind that you are buying the right and fresh one.
You can easily observe the fish by looking at its eyes, gills, fins, scales, and skin while buying it.
The fresh fish used to have;
- Clear and bright eyes
- Pinkish red gills
- Shiny and smooth scales
- Firm skin
- Free of slime skin
What are the signs of bad fish?
The shelf life of the fish is small even if it’s kept in the fridge. That’s why you should always check the fish before using it.
And if the fish is spoiled you shouldn’t use it.
Following are the signs of bad fish that will help you to whether your fish is usable or not;
- Slimy and milky flesh
- Off smell
- Off taste
- Brown bloodline
How to properly store the fish?
By properly storing the fish, its shelf life can be increased.
While storing the fish, you should keep in mind the following things;
- Always buy the fresh fish and store it in the fridge.
- You should use your fish within 1_2 days.
- Try to store the fish on ice in the fridge.
- If you want to store it for a longer time, you should freeze it.
- For this purpose, wrap the fish inan a moisture-free bag and put it in the freezer.
Here are the methods to properly handle and cook the fish.
What is the nutritional value of the fish?
Fish is very beneficial for your health as it contains several important nutrients.
The nutritional value for one half wild Atlantic salmon filet (154g) given by USDA is as follows;
- Calories: 280
- Fat: 12.5g
- Sodium: 86mg
- Carbohydrates: 0g
- Fiber 0g
- Sugars: 0g
- Protein: 39.2g
Conclusion:
In this brief guide, we answered the question “What happens if you eat expired fish?” With an in-depth analysis of “What type of food poisoning is caused by eating expired fish?”Moreover, we discussed the causes and preventions of food poisoning.