Edible insects role in transmission of parasitic diseases to humans (2019) • Hacker News Board

Re: Edible insects role in transmission of parasitic diseases to humans (2019)

#321

Post by jnwatson » Thu, Aug 18, 2022, 3:49 PM UTC

noduerme wrote: post #189

nivertech wrote: post #109

Larger animals can be inspected individually to find pathogens or diseases. Insects are so small that it's practically impossible to inspect each individual organism. You can do sampling of the batch, but the odds of missing bad ones are still high. Same with the fruits and vegetables, some are easy to inspect, others are almost impossible, or impossible to clean. There are kosher (insect-free) versions of lettuce an…

Religious laws like kosher and halal laws didn't develop from disgust. They engrained disgust to steer people away from contracting trichinosis. That was an exceedingly practical way of putting out a public health message prior to the advent of mass literacy. When my Jewish grandparents came from Ukraine to the US in the 1930s they'd never even considered or been presented with the possibility of eating pork... so fa…

“ When my Jewish grandparents came from Ukraine to the US in the 1930s they'd never even considered or been presented with the possibility of eating pork”

I don’t understand how that could occur, since a great deal of pork is produced in Ukraine, both now and historically.

Re: Edible insects role in transmission of parasitic diseases to humans (2019)

#322

Post by prometheus76 » Thu, Aug 18, 2022, 3:54 PM UTC

sbf501 wrote: post #271

jillesvangurp wrote: post #184

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Insects and crustaceans (shrimps, lobsters, etc.) are closely related; I always joke that shrimps are just under water bugs. Lots of people that are disgusted by one, enjoy eating the other. Disgust is mostly cultural and learned. Obviously, some of our gag reflexes are about detecting things that are bad. Like rotting meat or things that have gone off. But then we ferment and rot lots of things intentionally and the…

Is that why there's no "trout sushi"? Because it is fresh water? (At least that's what the SEO results on Google all say.)

Yes. Parasites that are dangerous to humans are much more prevalent in freshwater fish.

Re: Edible insects role in transmission of parasitic diseases to humans (2019)

#323

Post by throwaway0a5e » Thu, Aug 18, 2022, 3:56 PM UTC

automatic6131 wrote: post #166

baxtr wrote: post #107

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Quoted post unavailable.

Any ideas about how to achieve that? An n-child policy? Forced sterilization? Property size limits? Maybe you'll just be kind and suggest punitive taxes.

Make people wealthy enough to live comfortable lives and get educated.

Marginalize the people who get in the way of that goal.

Re: Edible insects role in transmission of parasitic diseases to humans (2019)

#324

Post by prometheus76 » Thu, Aug 18, 2022, 3:58 PM UTC

VBprogrammer wrote: post #117

sidkshatriya wrote: post #115

Earlier quoted context omitted.

There will always be some cultures that are different from the norm. 100% uniformity in human culture is very rare. But look across the globe: I would posit that a large percentage of humans have a taboo against insect consumption. If there are any counter examples that you can state from the world one must analyze how numerically large that community is within that country and the world. In other words, don't count…

I don't think taboos are in anyway useful in determining health implications. For example, are dogs or horses in any way materially worse than cows or sheep for people to eat? Why are the French happy to eat frogs and snails? I'm reasonably certain the idea of certain food being taboo is almost completely due to cultural norms.

Dogs and horses are not ruminants, therefore they are more likely to carry parasites that are harmful to humans. Cows and sheep are both ruminants. So yes, there is a difference beyond cultural preferences. Or I should say, cultural preferences are not just arbitrary.

Re: Edible insects role in transmission of parasitic diseases to humans (2019)

#325

Post by daniel-cussen » Thu, Aug 18, 2022, 4:00 PM UTC

selimthegrim wrote: post #289

daniel-cussen wrote: post #285

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I basically agree with that. So keep in mind the world eats basically European cuisine. It is for this reason that in Paris yes food is great but nothing is exotic because eg Duck á la Orange is known everywhere (and it was particularly exported in the 20th century, and particularly with the Green Revolution). And it's made to suit Europeans, so it seems like the restrictions are lax but actually European Christian d…

If you think the Orthodox can dictate to non-Orthodox you haven’t spent much time in America.

They don't, but they sympathize. And I did spend every second I could in America, absolutely every single second I could. The Non-Orthodox generally buffer the Orthodox strictures. Like demanding all lemonades they carry have the U in a circle symbol, kosher.

And no problem with that, I am unique in my ability to prove my pro-Semitism. I like Orthodox intolerance of, essentially, being poisoned. They take the heat for a lot of society's pure food and drugs.

Re: Edible insects role in transmission of parasitic diseases to humans (2019)

#326

Post by exhilaration » Thu, Aug 18, 2022, 4:02 PM UTC

daniel-cussen wrote: post #274

nivertech wrote: post #168

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I've read a medical research paper about the resurgence of some nasty parasitic disease in Israel with the breakdown by religious community[1]. Turns what? The stricter the dietary laws for the community were - the less infections occurred. And we're talking about sheep here, which is similar in size to pig. There are might be a confounding variables here though, i.e. some communities are mostly urban, others are mor…

There's the racial component as well. For instance Spaniards (ethnic Visigoths) have near-total immunity to bad pork, whereas Jews (Jewish Diaspora, ethnic Jews) are very vulnerable. Think of it this way: if there was a public service announcement by the early Jews, where would they write it down?

This sounds pretty absurd and I can't find anything on Google about native Spaniards having any kind of special immunity to "bad pork", specifically pork tapeworm or any of the other common pig parasites. So if you've got some links I'd love to read more.

Re: Edible insects role in transmission of parasitic diseases to humans (2019)

#327

Post by justcookitright » Thu, Aug 18, 2022, 4:02 PM UTC

eth0up wrote: post #261

The importance of this subject is underestimated and applies as well quite independently of whether humans eat the insects directly or not. Consider the cuban tree frog for example, which has long since initiated its campaign in Florida to host and spread throughout the food chain the rat lungworm nematode. Rat lungworm (angiostrongylus) holds its own in the burgeoning presence of hideous and hostile parasites. It is…

No post body was provided.

Re: Edible insects role in transmission of parasitic diseases to humans (2019)

#328

Post by prometheus76 » Thu, Aug 18, 2022, 4:04 PM UTC

PostOnce wrote: post #208

pb060 wrote: post #79

Insects are the food of the future. So glad to live in the present.

We'll all live in megacorp apartments eating crickets and own nothing but subscribe to everything.

Neom in Saudi Arabia is the vision for the future. I don't want to live in that future.

Re: Edible insects role in transmission of parasitic diseases to humans (2019)

#329

Post by Shindi » Thu, Aug 18, 2022, 4:04 PM UTC

eth0up wrote: post #261

The importance of this subject is underestimated and applies as well quite independently of whether humans eat the insects directly or not. Consider the cuban tree frog for example, which has long since initiated its campaign in Florida to host and spread throughout the food chain the rat lungworm nematode. Rat lungworm (angiostrongylus) holds its own in the burgeoning presence of hideous and hostile parasites. It is…

I'm sorry to be direct, I know your post has a ton of interesting knowledge, but it was impossible to read.

Have you considered using newlines or breaks?

You probably have amazing ideas and more people would read them if it was easier to read

(my 2c)

Re: Edible insects role in transmission of parasitic diseases to humans (2019)

#330

Post by jandrewrogers » Thu, Aug 18, 2022, 4:05 PM UTC

sbf501 wrote: post #271

jillesvangurp wrote: post #184

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Insects and crustaceans (shrimps, lobsters, etc.) are closely related; I always joke that shrimps are just under water bugs. Lots of people that are disgusted by one, enjoy eating the other. Disgust is mostly cultural and learned. Obviously, some of our gag reflexes are about detecting things that are bad. Like rotting meat or things that have gone off. But then we ferment and rot lots of things intentionally and the…

Is that why there's no "trout sushi"? Because it is fresh water? (At least that's what the SEO results on Google all say.)

Salmonid species (salmon, trout, char, et al) carry nematode parasites that can infect humans. Before salmonid sushi can be eaten, at least in the US, it is required to be frozen, killing the nematodes. Large trout species like rainbow trout are sometimes served as sushi -- I imagine species size and susceptibility to freezing damage factor in too.

Other freshwater fish like sturgeon are also served as sushi.