Wary! If you notice that your tongue has turned black or purple after eating, you must be careful because you may ...... Middle...... Poison...... Hoo!
This poison is still a "poison" that can make you carcinogenic, and it has been recognized as a Class 2A carcinogen by the World Health Organization's International Agency for Research on Cancer!
In life, there are several types of common "vegetables" that are easy to hide this poisoning and carcinogenic ingredient, and some are even very delicious!
And there is an even more deadly "dish" that is not cleaned correctly, and the 72-hour mortality rate is nearly 100%!
This kind of "dish" is easy to poison you, and it can cause cancer after a long time!
When Xiaofeng Emma was retrieving information, she was attracted by a video posted on the short video platform:
(Source: Screenshot of network video)
The cause of the incident was that netizens and their mothers went to eat hot pot, and after eating hot pot, they found that their tongues turned black, and when the two of them happily took videos and posted them on the platform to share their daily life with netizens, they were reminded by netizens that it might be: nitrite poisoning!!
Netizens who have the same experience left a message under this video saying that they had eaten hot pot before and had a black tongue, and they thought there was something wrong with eating!
What's going on here? Can eating hot pot really cause nitrite poisoning?
To answer this question, we must first understand what nitrite is!
Nitrite is a food additive commonly used in countries around the world, and the amount of nitrite has been strictly controlled because of its following two characteristics.
1. Nitrite: long-term eating can cause cancer
In the list of carcinogens published by the World Health Organization's International Center for Research on Cancer, nitrite is classified as a group 2A carcinogen because nitrite forms nitrosamines under the action of stomach acid, which can cause many cancers including liver cancer, oral cancer, and pancreatic cancer.
The World Health Organization (WHO) recommends that the daily nitrite intake should ideally be less than 0.06 mg/kg body weight.
2. Nitrite: It can poison people and even die
Nitrite has acute toxicity, after a one-time ingestion of 0.2~0.5g nitrite, acute poisoning symptoms may occur within 20 minutes, the human body will cause cyanosis due to tissue hypoxia, and the lips, tongue tip, and nails will be bruised. Patients experience headache, dizziness, fatigue, rapid heartbeat, and difficulty breathing.
If you take too much at one time, you are likely to suffer from coma, convulsions, incontinence, and finally death due to severe hypoxia of multiple organs.
The process is simply as follows: dyspnea - severe hypoxia - death from respiratory failure
Therefore, recall that netizens have a black tongue after eating hot pot, which is indeed consistent with the symptoms of nitrite poisoning, and it is very likely to be nitrite poisoning.
So why is there so much nitrite in hot pot? This may have something to do with the ingredients in the hot pot, the bottom of the pot, and the time it takes to cook the hot pot!
Wary! These "foods" are high in nitrites!
In general, nitrite is high in the following foods:
1. Long-lasting green leafy vegetables
Fresh vegetables are not actually high in nitrite content, but the nitrite content of vegetables can change during storage.
Generally speaking:
✔️ After 1~3 days of storage at room temperature, the nitrite content reaches its peak;
✔️ Under refrigerated conditions, the peak can be reached in 3~5 days
Therefore, it is recommended that in summer, it is best to eat and buy vegetables now, and do not store vegetables.
"Agroenvironment and Development" has investigated and compared the nitrite content of 13 vegetables in 7 categories. The results show that:
The types of vegetables and nitrite content in different cultivation seasons varied greatly, from high to low: green leafy vegetables> root vegetables> nightshades> beans> cabbages> melons, > cabbages
2. Pickled vegetables that have just been made
In 2023, a study published in BMC Medicine found that eating pickles regularly (≥4 days/week) was significantly associated with an increased risk of death from hemorrhagic stroke and esophageal cancer.
In the process of pickling, the nitrite content is highest in the first two weeks, after which the nitrite content gradually decreases.
Therefore, if you want to make pickles at home, it is recommended not to be too anxious, and to marinate them for at least 20 days before eating, which will greatly reduce the risk of poisoning.
3. Brightly colored cooked meat and braised meat
In order to make the cooked meat and braised meat sold in the market look good and extend the shelf life, many unscrupulous traders will secretly add nitrite.
Generally speaking, naturally cured meat is generally brown in color, and nitrite can make the meat a consistent pink color inside and out, so it is recommended to buy this kind of cooked meat and braised meat carefully.
4. Long-boiled clear soup hot pot
Xiaofeng Emma retrieved that a first-level food safety laboratory in Beijing simulated the production of spicy pots and clear soup pots to test the nitrate content of hot pot soup at different time nodes. The results showed that the clear soup pot with shabu-shabu was higher than the spicy pot with shabu-shabu meat.
And whether it is a clear soup pot or a spicy pot, its nitrite content will gradually increase as the cooking time increases.
How can we reduce the risk of nitrite poisoning and cancer? Eating foods rich in vitamin C can block the formation of carcinogens nitrosamines!
What common foods are rich in vitamin C?
When Xiaofeng Emma was searching for nitrite poisoning, she accidentally retrieved another food that is also easy to cause poisoning in summer, and this food is even more severe, with a mortality rate of nearly 100% in 72 hours, and we must pay special attention to the summer diet!
This kind of food, the washing method is not correct, and the mortality rate is nearly 100% in 72 hours!
This food is all kinds of seafood! Once the seafood is not cleaned in the right way, it is very likely to be infected with a "deadly bacteria", and the 72-hour mortality rate is nearly 100%!
Xiaofeng Emma retrieved a case: Ms. Zhang (pseudonym) bought a tilapia at the market and accidentally stabbed her left hand while cleaning. As a result, Ms. Zhang's left hand began to swell that night, and she was so painful that she couldn't sleep, and she also developed a high fever, and her body temperature soared to 39.7 degrees.
The next day, because of her serious condition, her family sent her to the hospital, but due to multiple organ failure, Ms. Zhang was not rescued!
And no one could have imagined that it was her washing fish that made Ms. Zhang lose her life! Because of her finger pricked, she eventually passed away due to Vibrio vulnificus infection!
Vibrio vulnificus infection is a disease with high amputation and mortality rates, and it has a high mortality rate. The mortality rate can reach more than 50% within 48 hours, and if there is no effective treatment for more than 72 hours, the mortality rate of infection will approach 100%.
Ms. Zhang did not wear gloves when cleaning seafood, which led to a punctured finger, and Vibrio vulnificus entered her body through the breach in Ms. Zhang's finger, which eventually killed Ms. Zhang!
So when washing foods like seafood, it's important to remember: wear gloves!
If you find that you have been pricked when cleaning seafood, you must wash the wound with water as soon as possible, and remember not to rinse with salt water, because Vibrio vulnificus is a halophilic Vibrio, salt water will aggravate the infection, and maintain a high level of vigilance, once you find that you have the following two conditions, seek medical attention immediately:
✔️ At first, the local skin tingling and numbness are predominant;
✔️ With the passage of time, symptoms of fever and chills appeared, and the swelling of the skin increased significantly, and even bloody bullous skin lesions appeared
Vibrio vulnificus infection progresses quickly, so don't delay!