Hotpot meals have become quite a popular choice among Malaysians nowadays and some of us really do enjoy being able to cook our own food.
But sometimes when we’re too hungry, we might get a little impatient and take the food – especially meat – out of the pot earlier than we’re supposed to.
Source: Daniel Food Diary
Well, this can actually be a very bad habit because taking the meat out earlier than you should means that there are bacteria and even possible tapeworms left unkilled. This could cause you to have many health problems and even put your life at risk.
This was what happened to a man from Hubei, China.
According to Sina News, the 46-year-old man developed epilepsy after failing to cook his pork and lamb slices properly during a hotpot meal. After going to the hospital, doctors found that he had a brain infection caused by a parasite that had entered his brain from the raw meat he consumed.
Source: Medium
It was reported that the man felt sick after his hotpot meal and went to the hospital where he was initially diagnosed with intracranial calcification caused by metal deposits in blood vessels.
Doctors suggested that they do further check-ups, but the man refused as he said that he had started feeling better. However, in the next few days, he started experiencing seizures at night and decided to go to the hospital for another check-up.
He was put through an MRI scan where the results showed that he had a serious parasitic infection in his brain!
Source: Sina News
The doctor attending to him believed that the undercooked slices of meat the patient had eaten contained tapeworms which are commonly found in raw or undercooked pork. The parasites could have entered his brain through his digestive system.
The doctor explained further that the parasite’s eggs can “hatch” in our digestive systems and circulate to different parts of the body, with the brain being the most common spot.
After thinking back to the hotpot meal he had, the patient remembered that he was rushing to eat. He also said that the mala soup base made it difficult for him to tell if the meat was cooked properly as the redness of the soup had masked the colour of the meat.
Source: The Woks of Life
Well, if you aren’t sure if the meat is cooked properly, there’s no harm in cooking it a little longer. Better to be safe than sorry, guys!
Also read: A Group of Friends Suffered Carbon Monoxide Poisoning After Charcoal From Hotpot Pollutes Air
