CATDOLL : CATDOLL: Why is it that eating pufferfish, known as one of the “Three Fresh Delicacies of the Yangtze River”, can easily cause poisoning?

There are not many people who are as obsessed with pufferfish meat as Su Dongpo, but 27 years ago, the former Ministry of Health's "Regulations on the Administration of Aquatic Product Hygiene" clearly stated that "pufferfish is highly toxic and cannot be put on the market". As long as the Chinese pufferfish industry enters the gray area, 3354 restaurants selling pufferfish will be illegal. The Ministry of Agriculture and the State Food and Drug Administration announced the "Notice on Conditional Liberalization of the Processing and Operation of Farmed Red Fin Oriental and Farmed Dark Pattern Oriental", conditionally lifting the two types of pufferfish (commonly known as pufferfish). So far, the pufferfish industry has ushered in its own spring again. Every year, 20,000 tons of fresh pufferfish are delivered to the table, and the restaurants that used to operate pufferfish secretly have doubled their customer flow.

However, six months after the implementation of the new maritime ban, some merchants did not seriously handle farmed and wild pufferfish, but directly pushed them into the market, resulting in frequent poisoning incidents, and the pufferfish market began to face a crisis again. As for pufferfish, the former Ministry of Health introduced the "Regulations on the Hygiene Management of Aquatic Products" in early 1990, stipulating that pufferfish should not enter the market after returning. However, even with policy constraints, "Su Dongpo"'s admiration for pufferfish meat is still unstoppable. Especially in the lower reaches of the Yangtze River, the phenomenon of eating pufferfish is still very common. But eating pufferfish is always in a gray area.

Previously, it was believed that the toxin of the sunfish came from itself, but later it was found that the toxin is also found in organisms such as salamanders. Studies have shown that the toxin is the result of microorganisms turning into algae, which then poisons pufferfish. "The toxin of the sunfish can be more than 1,200 times that of cyanide. Each gram of toxin can kill 2,000 people," said Chen Shunsheng.

The toxicity of mackerel is related to many factors such as species and growth environment. Among them, the ovaries and liver are the parts with strong toxins, so they should be avoided when eating. There are more than 100 known species of mackerel. At present, my country mainly cultivates red fin sunfish and dark door sunfish. The Shanghai area is mainly in Dark Door Cave and Bengbu. "At present, we have a basic understanding of the mechanism of toxin production in rivers. Through professional and accredited farms, artificial breeding farms use water and non-toxic feed, and the toxic content has been greatly reduced and is basically controllable. Chefs who cook puffer fish in restaurants must have relevant qualities. Citizens choose farmed and processed sunfish without danger. "Chen Shunsheng said: "Citizens should be reminded not to choose sunfish of unknown origin." Wild sunfish are easier to catch, but the liver, fish, and blood are highly toxic and cannot be destroyed even at high temperatures. "

This is mainly because pufferfish contains certain toxins, which may cause neurotoxicity if eaten.

Pufferfish has always been a delicious food, but its blood and liver contain a neurotoxin that is very toxic. If it is not handled properly before consumption, it will cause poisoning.

Because this kind of animal carries certain toxic substances in its body, if you want to handle these substances well, the chef does need to have certain skills. If it is not handled cleanly, it is easy to cause poisoning.

The poisonous component of puffer fish is tetrodotoxin, which is a neurotoxin. If a person ingests 0.5mg-3mg of tetrodotoxin, it can be fatal. The liver, spleen, kidney, ovary, testicle, eyeball, skin and blood of puffer fish are all poisonous. The eggs, ovaries and liver are the most poisonous, followed by kidneys, blood, eyes and skin. The toxin is heat-resistant and will not be destroyed for 8 hours at 100℃, but will be destroyed for 1 hour at 120℃. Salting and sun exposure cannot destroy the toxin.