FOODIE RUSTICA: AUGUST 2008

Gourmet.com Warns Against Eating Raw Salmon

(Aug. 21, 2008)—NEW YORK—(BUSINESS WIRE)—A gourmet.com report offers insight into the problem of tapeworms in raw salmon. Raw salmon dishes—tartare, crudo, sushi, marinated and cured salmon—are popular at top restaurants these days, and they're showing up in home kitchens as well.

But as seafood expert Jon Rowley explains in an exclusive report, a tiny tapeworm larva may be lurking in the raw salmon flesh, just waiting for you to eat it so that it can take up residence in your digestive tract.

How can you protect yourself? Rowley offers these invaluable tips:

When eating out, order only salmon that has been fully cooked
If you do choose to eat raw salmon preparations such as tartare or crudo, make sure the fish has first been frozen at minus 31 degrees Fahrenheit or colder for at least 15 hours. If you think you may have contracted a tapeworm from raw salmon, be sure to contact your physician
Symptoms of infection may include abdominal cramping, fatigue, diarrhea, and nausea (though there may be no symptoms at all)
Any fish that live in fresh water for part or all of their lives can harbor tapeworm larvae, so these same rules apply to trout, tilapia, catfish, and more

To get the full story and find out how you can protect yourself, click here.