Treatment for the disease
When fighting tapeworm, the doctor prescribes an individual course of treatment.
The method and course of treatment depend on the degree of the disease and the amount of fish worm in the human body. To remove a small number of parasites, various medicinal tablets are used. If the worm is located in a hard-to-reach place, then surgical intervention is necessary. How to get rid of tapeworm with medication? First of all, the doctor prescribes adsorbents that remove various infections from the intestines. In addition, special anthelmintic tablets are prescribed. The main drugs for removing tapeworm from the human body are:
- Trichlorsal;
- Helminth 920;
- Gelmodol-VM;
- Sanoxal;
- Albendazole;
- Fenasal.
As a result of treatment, it is important to observe how the worm leaves the human body. This is done in order to help the person, because if the parasite dies inside the intestines and does not come out, this will lead to severe poisoning
If the tapeworm in a person is not cured with medication, then the patient is prescribed a surgical operation to remove it. For postoperative recovery, the patient is prescribed drugs to enhance immunity, a vitamin complex is prescribed, and anti-inflammatory drugs are prescribed. Traditional medicine can be used as a supplement.
Treatment of parasitic infestation
Many patients who think that they are infected with parasites and that something is moving inside them are mistaken. Very often this condition is a consequence of a psychosomatic disorder. Therefore, for an accurate diagnosis, you must consult a doctor and not self-medicate.
Usually people go to the hospital when the infection has already reached its worst stage. Intestinal obstruction has begun, and parts of the worm are found in the stool. A special analysis helps to detect the parasite at an early stage.
Since the tapeworm is a hermaphrodite that is capable of fertilizing itself, it begins to actively reproduce inside the human body. In a day, it can lay up to a million larvae, which usually exit the body along with waste products. The parasite regenerates well; to get rid of the worm, you need to completely remove it from the body. Even the smallest particle left in the intestines can cause re-infection.
Only inpatient treatment can help. It lasts approximately 10 days. Special poisons are introduced into the body that should kill the tapeworm. The drug is taken for three days in a row. After a short break, there will be another dose of medication. At the same time, it is worth getting tested for concomitant diseases so as not to aggravate them during treatment for the parasite.
Surgery is prescribed only if intestinal obstruction occurs due to several large worms.
How to cook properly
If a helminth is discovered when cutting fish, it should be carefully pulled out so that fragments do not remain in the product. Having removed the entire worm, do not forget that the larvae and eggs can continue to exist in other cavities of the fish’s body and cause infection in humans. To prevent this from happening, familiarize yourself with the basic principles of cooking it:
- Cooking. Before cooking, infected fish should be soaked for several hours in a solution with salt. It should be cooked for at least half an hour to ensure complete death of the helminth larvae.
- Frying. It is recommended to fry the product for at least 15 minutes. It is best to cook fish by cutting it into small pieces - some of the larvae may remain in large portions. You can also grind it with a meat grinder or blender and make minced fish.
Smoking. This is one way to avoid the possibility of helminthic infestation. It is best to choose a hot processing method or baking over an open fire.
Purchased smoked fish is not guaranteed to be completely free of parasite larvae, so you should be careful when purchasing the product or preparing it yourself. Drying. This process can destroy adult individuals, but is not able to eliminate parasite eggs.
Before purchasing a finished product, you should carefully inspect it for the presence of swollen body fragments. Freezing. The presence of tapeworm in purchased fish does not mean that the product should necessarily be thrown away. You can try to cook it correctly, following the rules of proper heat treatment.
After removing the parasite from the internal organs, it is recommended to freeze the aquatic inhabitant, leaving it in the freezer for 2-3 days. Using deep freezing, you can get rid of individuals living in muscle tissue. To do this, remove the entrails from the belly, wash the fish with running water, cut it into small pieces and send it to the cold at a temperature of -18°C.
Products weighing up to one kilogram are frozen for 10 hours or more, larger ones for 24 hours. For complete safety, you should deep freeze the fish and leave it in the freezer for three days, at a temperature of at least -20°C. The product should not be eaten raw. Only prolonged heat treatment guarantees the death of parasites.
When preparing dried fish at home, wash it thoroughly, take out the insides, and soak it in a bowl of salt. After this, hang it to dry.
Rules for preparing fish products
If you still want to enjoy the catch, then you need to properly heat treat it to minimize the likelihood of infection. The following culinary tricks can help in this undertaking:
- The giblets should be removed from the fish carcass and washed thoroughly;
- It is better to cook clean fillet;
- before cooking, it is recommended to cut the meat into small pieces or process it into minced fish;
- The product needs to be cooked for a long time at high temperature.
Another way to disinfect a product is to freeze it. The pre-cleaned and thoroughly washed carcass is placed in the freezer for at least 10 hours. It is better to use the deep freezing method: the carcass is placed in a freezer for three days at a temperature of -20°C or at -8-10°C for several weeks. Under the influence of such low temperatures, living larvae die.
Whether to eat saltpeter fish or not is everyone’s choice. Do not forget to thoroughly heat treat the purchased product before eating. But it is better to completely avoid eating fish that is infected with tapeworm, and you should not buy dried and salted products from suppliers who are not trustworthy.
Be careful tapeworm
19.12.10 12:48
(30 votes, average 3.63 out of 5)
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More and more often, fish infected with a parasite, tapeworm, or its other name, tapeworm, are appearing in water bodies.
Those who are not familiar with this may have several questions related to this. We will try to answer the most relevant ones. A tapeworm is a parasitic tapeworm that, while still a larva, enters the intestines of a living organism, lives and parasitizes there, feeding mainly on blood. Some individuals can penetrate the tissues and organs of the abdominal cavity. Externally, the tapeworm is an elongated ribbon-like body up to 20-40 cm long and 0.5-1.5 cm wide; there are small suckers on the head, with which they cling to the intestinal walls and take away most of the nutrients from the host. In addition, as the worms increase in size, they put pressure on the internal organs, which leads to their atrophy.
What types of fish are susceptible to this disease?
Most often, white fish are susceptible to this disease, especially bream and roach, as well as pike. The intermediate host of the tapeworm is Cyclops (small crustaceans); the final host is waterbirds.
How to recognize infected fish?
The first sign of tapeworm fish is a swollen, compacted abdomen. When you press it, the tapeworm may come out. Infected fish stop feeding and float on the surface of the water. The greatest risk of catching infected fish occurs in late spring and summer, when the larvae enter a warm body of water. If you catch fish and are immediately able to recognize signs of the disease, you should inform the owner of the reservoir. Under no circumstances should such fish be put back into the body of water in which you caught it.
Is it possible to eat tapeworm fish?
The tapeworm is primarily a parasite that harms not only the carrier fish, but also humans. Even if you remove the long worm along with its entrails, the larvae may be in the meat or other places out of sight. And the size of the larvae is too small to recognize them as a real threat.
How to cook this fish?
If you still decide not to throw away your catch, then try to at least reduce the risk of helminth infection. Before cooking, the fish must be thoroughly gutted and washed. It is best to immediately cut it into fillets. Such fish certainly needs long hot processing. Portion pieces should be made small, or minced fish should be prepared from the fillet. Salting and drying solitaire fish is not recommended. Another way to disinfect fish is freezing. Cleaned and washed fish with running water is placed in the freezer for at least 10 hours. As a result of sub-zero heat treatment, tapeworm larvae die.
Is it possible to eat bream with a tapeworm?
If you are not afraid of the possibility of becoming infected and the possible consequences, then you can eat tapeworm bream. It must first be properly prepared. First, the carcass should be cut and then washed thoroughly under running water.
Tapeworm larvae are very resilient, so the meat must be finely chopped to ensure thorough processing. It should be remembered that eggs can remain on anything that has come into contact with infected bream. For this reason, all dishes, utensils and hands must be thoroughly washed under hot water with laundry soap and chemicals.
Read more about how to gut and fillet bream.
What to do if you feel bad about throwing away your catch?
Note! If a mature worm is found in the abdominal cavity of the fish, the risk of infective larvae in the meat is very high. If it’s a pity to part with your catch, the tapeworm can be neutralized by high-quality processing of the fish
To protect yourself from the penetration of parasites, you must adhere to certain rules. First of all, you need to thoroughly gut the carcass. Pay special attention to the tapeworm itself: all segments must be removed
If it is a pity to part with the catch, the tapeworm can be neutralized by high-quality processing of the fish. To protect yourself from the penetration of parasites, you must adhere to certain rules. First of all, you need to thoroughly gut the carcass
Pay special attention to the tapeworm itself: all segments must be removed
After this, choose one of the methods of processing the fish, in which the larvae are guaranteed to die:
- freeze at a temperature of -20ºC (the carcass is kept in the freezer for at least 24 hours, ideally 3 days);
- pickle. Take salt at the rate of 12–20% of the total weight of the fish. The time for complete salting out is 6–12 days, depending on the density of the muscle tissue;
- cut into small pieces, cook for at least 30 minutes from the moment of boiling or fry for 15–20 minutes on each side;
- bake over an open fire;
- smoke hot.
Viable larvae, invisible to the eye, can end up on hands and kitchen utensils. Hands, knives, cutting boards must be thoroughly washed with laundry soap.
Saltpeter fish is significantly inferior in taste and nutritional value to healthy individuals.
Note! The most dangerous in terms of tapeworm infection are dishes made from raw and lightly salted fish (sushi, stroganina and others), including caviar. This also includes cold smoked and dried fish
With weak salting and no heat treatment, plerocercoid larvae do not die and retain the ability to parasitize in the intestines of humans or animals, passing into the adult stage.
Raw fillet is distinguished not only by its nutritional value, but also by the presence of invisible parasite larvae in the tissue
The fish tapeworm infects mainly representatives of the carp family, which are traditionally caught. Crucian carp and bream are especially vulnerable. In salt water the parasite occurs on a smaller scale. The most commonly caught sea creature is tapeworm pollock.
On a note! A representative of the cod family usually arrives in stores in a deep-frozen state; after heat treatment, it can be eaten. A person can become infected with a helminth only in one case: by eating fish whose muscle tissue contains plerocercoids. Prolonged heat treatment of fish and compliance with sanitary and hygienic standards will reduce the risk to a minimum.
And in conclusion, one more piece of advice: do not buy dried bream or cold smoked pike from random sellers. Along with a gastronomic delicacy, there is a high risk of introducing a fair amount of viable tapeworm larvae and other worms into the stomach.
Prevention of disease in humans
It is impossible to completely exclude the purchase or catch of tapeworm fish, since it is quite difficult to identify the parasite by external signs. But in order to prevent human infection, you need to adhere to the following preventive measures:
- Carefully inspect the fish before purchasing, pay attention to the bloating and density of the abdomen. Sometimes when you press on it, the worm can come out.
- Do not buy pre-gutted fish, since it will be impossible to check whether it is infected with tapeworm.
- When purchasing, preference should be given to fish grown in artificial reservoirs. In such conditions, her food is artificial food. In addition, parasite prevention is carried out in specially equipped reservoirs.
- If a tapeworm is detected, depending on the degree of your disgust, the fish should either be thrown away or carefully processed. For this purpose, freezing at a low temperature, well-frying or long-term salting are suitable.
- Infected fish meat, and especially its entrails, should not be fed to domestic animals.
- After processing the fish, thoroughly wash all kitchen utensils that were used.
- It is strictly forbidden to eat river fish raw!
- Do not buy salted fish, as unscrupulous producers do not adhere to salting times. There is a high chance of tapeworm infection.
There are different opinions about whether saltpeter fish is dangerous. Whether you can eat it or whether it’s better to dispose of it depends on whether a person wants to risk their health for the sake of a tasty piece of fish. After all, even a small, inconspicuous larva, once in the intestines, can turn into an adult tapeworm. Be careful. Good health to you!
How to recognize infected fish
What does saltpeter fish look like? It develops worse than its uninfected counterparts. He eats poorly, grows slowly, and therefore lags behind in size and looks worse. In the final stages, the fish swims at the surface of the water, sometimes floating upside down.
Why does saltpeter fish float on the surface? This is due to the fact that the tapeworm compresses the swim bladder, making the fish unable to stay deep under water. Infected fish become more vulnerable to the final hosts of the parasite - birds. If while fishing you see a large number of fish that do not sink to the bottom, but swim near the surface, there is a high probability that the entire school is infected with parasites.
Saltpeter bream bites poorly, and it offers virtually no resistance after being caught. An unpleasant odor can be felt in an infected body of water.
The belly of the caught fish appears swollen. In some cases, if you press lightly on it, you can see the head of the tapeworm emerge from under the skin. Opening the belly, you can find a long, light-colored parasite. Infection of fish with larvae can only be recognized using a microscope.
Is it possible to swim in a contaminated pond?
The period when fish are infected with tapeworm occurs in the summer, when people begin to go out to water bodies to swim. You can only become infected with tapeworm through the meat of diseased fish, so don’t be afraid to swim in the water. Although it is worth remembering that polluted water bodies are dangerous not only from fish helminths. Other parasites may well develop in insufficiently clean water. Therefore, you should be careful when choosing a vacation spot.
What is saltpeter fish
The tapeworm belongs to the genus of tapeworms. It has an indirect life cycle: in order to infect a person and turn into a sexually mature individual, the tapeworm goes through several stages.
- The eggs, along with the feces of the mammalian host, fall into the water, where they are swallowed by crustaceans and mollusks, which the fish feed on.
- After parasite eggs enter the body of freshwater fish (pike perch, trout, salmon, burbot, roach, roach), the larval stage of the broad tapeworm develops. Birds feed on infected fish, and with their feces the larvae return to the water, where they are swallowed by mollusks and crayfish.
- Infection of freshwater fish and transition to the next stage - the formation of plerocercoid larvae. It is in this form that the tapeworm is able to infect a person and fully develop in his body to a sexually mature individual.
The broad tapeworm or fish tapeworm is a flat, white tapeworm. What a helminth looks like can be clearly seen in the photo. Its body consists of a head with suckers and segments (the eggs ripen in them), which gradually fall off, replaced by new ones. Tapeworm is the largest helminth that infects the human body.
Fish infected with parasite eggs are not dangerous. The tapeworm in the human body is not able to enter the larval stage. To do this, he needs to change several more intermediate media. But fish infected with plerocercoid larvae are tapeworms. Through it, a person becomes infected, after which the transformation of the worm into an adult sexually mature individual begins.
Life cycle of tapeworm
Externally, beltworms look like yellowish or white worms about a centimeter thick and 5 to 8 centimeters long. At the front end of the worm there are special organs with which it attaches to the organs of its host.
The life cycle of plerocercoids begins with the fact that sexually mature worms lay eggs in the intestines of fish-eating birds (pelicans, gulls, cormorants, etc.). From there, the eggs of parasitic worms fall into bodies of water, where larvae hatch from them.
Helminth larvae are swallowed by the first intermediate hosts - microscopic crustaceans. Fish eat crustaceans and become infected with ligulosis themselves. In the body of fish, worms grow to significant sizes and at the end of their life cycle enter the intestines of birds.
Find out more: Worms in kittens: Symptoms, signs and treatment with tablets
The general life cycle of a tapeworm is approximately the same for all parasites:
- eggs fall onto the soil, grass or into water with the feces of the last carrier (many easily survive wintering and remain viable);
- in the process of feeding animals, eggs enter the body of intermediate hosts; the developed larva of the parasite spreads through the circulatory system into the muscle tissues and internal organs of the animal;
- Through meat, the parasite enters the human body, where it develops into a full-fledged adult, which begins reproduction for a new development cycle.
Is it possible to eat fish with tapeworm?
How dangerous this helminth is for humans is a controversial issue. Many enthusiasts believe that properly cooked fish meat will avoid infection. You can eat a product that is well thermally processed. Unspoken rules:
- fried fish is eaten after processing at a temperature of 55-60°C;
- frozen products - at a temperature of -18-20°C.
Please note that with this processing, a small amount of useful substances is retained in fish meat. But doctors recommend treating the problem more rationally. It’s better not to joke with your health and exclude fish infected with parasites from your diet. As a preventive measure, it is recommended to take anthelmintic drugs, and additionally you can undergo medical tests.
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Folk remedies
Alternative medicine has effective methods of combating parasites, but they require long-term use and are not always able to completely get rid of worms. First of all, you need to change your diet, making it dietary.
Vegetables, fruits, cereals and wheat bran stew may not be the height of culinary art, but they are good for removing parasites.
During this period, it is recommended to eat pumpkin seeds with lingonberries. It is enough to grind these ingredients and eat 1-2 spoons on an empty stomach, wash down with plenty of water.
Another appointment should be in a couple of hours. It is better to abstain from other foods until lunch. Cleansing enemas will remove parasites accumulated in the large intestine.
Important! To completely get rid of a parasitic infection, you need to combine medication and alternative treatment.
At what temperature does tapeworm die in fish?
Eliminating an adult from a carcass is not difficult. It is somewhat more difficult to destroy worm eggs, but if heat treatment standards are observed, this is quite possible to achieve. The tapeworm in fish dies if you fry or boil the meat at 55 degrees. In addition, it is known that the parasite cannot tolerate low temperatures. Thus, worms in fish die if the product is frozen for 10 hours or more.
It is important to note that with prolonged exposure to low temperatures, the risk of infection is practically reduced to zero, which cannot be said with certainty about heat treatment
If, when cutting fish, you see a tapeworm in it, then it is better to throw it away immediately. After all, this parasite lays its larvae in the meat, so you risk becoming infected even if you decide to clean it well and only then eat it. Of course, many people say that heat treatment disinfects meat and makes it suitable for eating; the main thing is to boil or fry it well. But everyone must decide for themselves whether they can eat it with parasite larvae. By the way, contaminated meat is different from regular meat; it is not as tasty and less nutritious.
Most often, tapeworm in fish is found in fresh water bodies. The most susceptible to infection are cyprinids: bream, roach, roach, rudd. From the intestines of the fish, where it enters along with food, the parasite moves into the abdominal cavity, where it grows. Sometimes there are specimens that grow more than a meter in length. They compress all the internal organs of the fish until they completely atrophy. When the worm gets too big, the sides of the fish burst and the pathogen gets into the water.
If you love fishing, you can tell if a fish has tapeworm in it before you catch it. Infected specimens will always float on the surface of the water. This happens because the worm that has settled inside the fish disrupts the functioning of the swim bladder, and the fish simply cannot sink to the bottom. You should not rejoice at easy prey and catch weakened animals that float almost on the surface of the water.
Tapeworm in fish is especially dangerous if it is not heat treated. For example, salting or cold smoking will not harm the parasite larvae in any way, and a person who eats such meat will most likely become infected. Many people who fish for resale will not be bothered by tapeworms in their fish. They will simply clean it and salt it in the usual way. So, an infected individual may end up on your table if you like to buy salted or smoked fish at the market from unfamiliar sellers.
If you buy raw, uncleaned specimens or go fishing yourself, then you have a better chance of seeing with your own eyes what a tapeworm looks like in fish. When cutting the belly, you will notice a long white tapeworm - this is the parasite described. Despite the fact that meat can be eaten after heat treatment, not everyone will decide to take this step after what they see.
After all, infection with a tapeworm leads to loss of appetite, abdominal pain, nausea, weakness, intestinal disorders, and insomnia. This disease can cause enormous harm to human health: the worm not only settles in the intestines, its larvae can infect the lungs, muscles, liver and even the brain.
If you see something suspicious in the belly of a cut bream or carp, it is better to put the find aside and see what the tapeworm looks like in the fish. then, posted in this article, will help you understand what exactly you found. Only after you understand what kind of parasite you are dealing with can you decide the future fate of the fish. But in any case, do not forget that only high-quality heat treatment can kill the parasite larvae.
What types of fish are susceptible to infection?
According to experts, 47 species of fish are susceptible to tapeworm infection, especially with regard to river fish such as crucian carp, silver bream, rudd, asp, pike, roach, etc. At the same time, bream suffers the most from such an invasion, so often the entire catch is infected.
As a rule, infected fish are found in reservoirs with dirty water. Today there are plenty of similar reservoirs throughout our country. Large rivers are also not without this drawback, not to mention small lakes and ponds, in which all the fish can be infected.
Important point! If an unpleasant aroma emanates from the water, then this is a sure sign that the fish in the reservoir are infected with helminths. When the tapeworm no longer fits inside the fish, it tears it apart. As a result, fish die, and in large numbers, which poisons the reservoir.
Such fish can also be caught in regions that are characterized as prosperous from the point of view of environmentalists. In the Far East, worms are found in such valuable fish as trout and salmon, as well as in roach.
Marine fish are not affected by tapeworms very often because this parasite does not like to live in salt water. Therefore, only some species of salmon are susceptible to such invasion.
Interesting to know! In some species of fish such a worm is practically never found. These are whitefish, peled, pike perch, therefore, the more such fish in a reservoir, the less other fish are infected with helminths.
Description of the parasite
The tapeworm is a long, white flatworm. It can reach up to 25 cm in length and 20 mm in width. The worm has suckers on its body, which attach it to the abdominal cavity. The tapeworm is capable of fully recovering from even a small piece of its body. It enters the fish’s body in the form of a small larva, and then grows, sticking to the circulatory system. As it develops, it seriously deforms vital organs. The spleen, liver and genitals begin to atrophy. The body becomes intoxicated and metabolism is severely disrupted.
For tapeworm, fish is an intermediate host. Its ultimate target is birds that eat contaminated fish. The worm is a hermaphrodite. In the body of the final host, a bird, it lays larvae, which end up in the reservoir along with excrement. The fish accidentally swallows the larva.
The worm develops in the animal's abdominal cavity, feeding on nutrients. Another bird catches and eats the infected fish. Thus, the tapeworm enters the body of the final host. Afterwards the cycle is repeated over and over again. Infection quickly covers almost all inhabitants of the reservoir. For prevention, all sick fish are caught, and the carrier birds are shot.
Disposal
Many people are frightened when, during gutting, worms move in the insides, looking like long white ribbons. They are hesitant to use such fish for cooking and may give it to domestic or street animals. This is strictly forbidden, since the tapeworm will enter the body of a cat or dog and begin to parasitize it. Tapeworm fish should be disposed of: put in a plastic bag and thrown into the garbage chute so that the animal does not get it.
Fish in which a parasite was discovered while fishing is also subject to disposal. If you release it back into the pond, there it will become instant prey for birds. Then their excrement with larvae will get into the water and become food for Cyclops crustaceans, which, in turn, are food for fish. Suspicious individuals are burned or buried.
Symptoms of human infection
In the first stages of tapeworm infection, a person may not feel any changes in his body. Tapeworm, unlike other helminths, has less effect on well-being, and therefore its presence in the body can go unnoticed for a long time. Mild symptoms of illness may be mistaken for another disease. Since the worm settles in the intestines, a person may experience problems with the gastrointestinal tract.
The main symptoms of tapeworm infection:
- loose stools or constipation that occurred suddenly and for no reason;
- increased salivation;
- dizziness;
- sudden weight loss;
- intestinal obstruction;
- irritability;
- a feeling that something is moving inside (it is not the parasite itself that is moving, but the muscles contracting under its influence);
- anemia;
- weakness and apathy;
- decreased appetite or, conversely, constant hunger;
- small red wounds appear on the tongue;
- gagging and nausea.
In some countries, tapeworm is specially introduced into the human body so that it helps quickly and effectively lose weight. Afterwards the parasite is removed. You should not do this intentionally, because helminth infection can lead to very serious health consequences.
Health Hazard
Humans are also susceptible to tapeworm infection. It occurs after ingesting fish meat that has not undergone heat treatment. First, the parasite larvae penetrate the stomach and then the intestines. The helminth attaches itself to the walls of the small intestine, where it can spend about 20 years. The tapeworm carries male and female cells, which means it is capable of reproduction. An adult tapeworm can release a huge number of larvae into the body.
Tapeworm infection can lead to the following complications:
- diphyllobothriasis, which can lead to intestinal blockage;
- necrosis and death of tissue at the site of attachment of the worm;
- anemia;
- allergic reaction;
- problems with the central nervous system;
- oncological diseases.
Precautionary measures
Not in all cases it is possible to determine whether a fish is infected with tapeworm.
But the risk can be minimized if you listen to some advice and act with caution and prudence:
- Before purchasing fish, it is advisable to inspect it thoroughly visually. Its density and swelling should alert you.
- Even if it makes the work easier, it is not recommended to buy gutted fish. This makes it impossible to understand whether there was a worm in it.
- It is better to give preference to fish caught in an artificial reservoir. There she is mainly fed dry food, which minimizes the risk of her becoming infected with this terrible worm.
- Fish in which tapeworm was found during gutting should be disposed of immediately.
- Under no circumstances should you feed contaminated meat or fish to animals.
- It is imperative to wash with a saline or soda solution, then treat with vinegar all kitchen utensils that were used in processing the fish.
- It is not advisable to eat raw fish from the river.
- It is better not to purchase salted or dried fish if you are unsure of the quality and technology used to prepare and store it.
- To cook meat, you need to spend at least 30 minutes. Fry fish by thoroughly frying it on all sides. Each side of the fillet should be cooked over low heat for at least 20 minutes.
- Freezing fish will help avoid possible infection. It must be in the freezer for at least 48 hours.
- Salted fish should be kept in a salt solution for at least 2 weeks. But this cannot always save you from infection because the death of eggs, larvae and the parasite itself requires heat treatment or low sub-zero temperatures.
- Fish with obvious signs of the presence of worms in it is not suitable for hot, much less cold smoking.
- You should not choose places for fishing with a suspicious reputation or those where it is prohibited to do so.
Only a healthy and adequate approach to this issue will help avoid infection with this dangerous parasite.
Smoked and dried fish
Infection through dried fish is possible. An adult tapeworm usually dies when dried, but the eggs can remain viable for a long time. Smoked fish can also be dangerous if the cooking technology is not followed. If the fish has not been subjected to sufficient heat treatment, the risk of infection is very high. Tapeworm can also be found in everyone's favorite herring.
You should only buy fish from trusted sellers. It needs to be thoroughly examined. If you suspect that the fish is infected, you should refuse to purchase.
What is tapeworm in fish?
The tapeworm is a tape parasite that attaches to the inner walls of the intestine with suckers and hooks in its head.
It can reach several meters in size, and survives even with only a head segment. Its entire body is divided into uniform sections that can tear off and leave the wearer's body. The number of these segments corresponds to the number of possible eggs the parasite can lay.
There are several types of tapeworms: bovine and pork tapeworms, dwarf tapeworms, dog tapeworms, and wide tapeworms. The differences between them are the method of entry into the human body and the size of the worm itself.
Many people believe that parasites in the intestines lead exclusively to rapid weight loss, but this symptom can be considered the most innocent. The most dangerous thing is suppression of the immune system and the development of secondary diseases.
Types of tapeworm
Bovine tapeworm: A parasite that is considered one of the longest to live in the human body is the bovine tapeworm. As an intermediate carrier before humans, it parasitizes cattle; humans, in any case, remain the final infected host.
Tapeworm in fish. The maximum recorded length of an individual bull tapeworm is 22 meters, but the average is 12 meters. With a thickness of 2 mm, even such a long intestinal parasite can exist in the human body for many years without causing serious discomfort.
These worms do not have their own digestive system, but absorb nutrients directly through the body. Infection occurs due to insufficient heat treatment of meat, because the eggs of the parasite are found in the muscle tissue of cows. Employees of meat processing plants, slaughterhouses, farms and food processing plants are susceptible to teniarinosis (infection with bovine tapeworm).
Pork tapeworm parasite: A smaller parasite, the pork tapeworm, causes the disease taeniasis. The localization of the disease is East Asia, Latin America and Africa, and in Russia – the Krasnodar Territory. The intermediate carrier before the human body is pigs, and it does not matter whether they are wild boars or domestic farm animals.
Taeniasis is dangerous because humans are the last carrier, which means that the colony of worms
will multiply until it destroys the host. Due to the way it is attached, pork tapeworm can damage the walls of the intestines or internal organs.
Broad tapeworm: what is tapeworm in fish? This is a tapeworm - a wide tapeworm that enters the human body with raw or poorly processed fish meat. It rarely exceeds several meters in length, but this makes it no less dangerous for the life of its owner.
The life cycle of this parasite is more varied than that of parasites of cows or pigs. The entire chain of carriers and rebirth of the tapeworm is as follows:
- The worm egg in water degenerates into a larva;
- coracidium settles in small crustaceans;
- the fish’s body becomes infected through feeding on crustaceans;
- the parasite spreads to all tissues of the fish’s body (bream, perch, carp);
- a person becomes infected through meat or fish by-products.
As you can see, humans again remain the final carrier (along with animals that eat fish, such as cats), which means there is a particular danger of the parasite being in the body. What are fish tapeworms and what diseases do they cause to humans? These are anemia, anemia, problems with the gastrointestinal tract. Due to a decrease in the number of beneficial microorganisms, the nervous and immune systems are suppressed.
Solitaire fish: signs, behavioral characteristics
The tapeworm in the abdominal cavity of an aquatic inhabitant quickly increases in size. It compresses the swim bladder and other organs, which leads to their atrophy. Tapeworm in fish causes metabolic disorders and endogenous intoxication. The altered swim bladder loses its hydrostatic function.
There are a number of signs that allow you to visually identify an infected individual:
- saltpeter fish rarely descends to a depth of more than 3 meters. Usually floats on the surface of the water (often on its side). From time to time he rolls over onto his back;
- the belly is hard and swollen. When pressed, a tapeworm segment may appear from it;
- When playing, it behaves passively and practically does not resist. Once caught, it quickly dies.
You can verify the presence of the parasite during the process of gutting the catch: flat white worms will be found in the abdominal cavity of the tapeworm fish. Helminth larvae are localized in the liver, intestines, and muscle layer near the fins. It is impossible to see them with the naked eye.
The peak of tapeworm infestation occurs in the summer months, but at other times of the year the likelihood of catching sick fish is quite high.
