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To all the pork lovers in town, you could be in danger if you have been consuming undercooked or raw pork knowingly or unknowingly.According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), meat lovers who eat undercooked pork get infected with pig tapeworm. This causes an infection caused by larval cysts of the pork’s tapeworm.
This is because pork meat is prone to these bacteria and parasites that can only be killed in the cooking process. Various health research shows that when pork isn’t cooked through to its proper temperature, there’s a risk that those bacteria and parasites will survive and be consumed.A study conducted by the African Journal of Rural Development in Kiambu county, where there was a break out of tapeworm disease due to consumption of undercooked pork, indicates that the tapeworm travels typically to other areas of the body like the brain, eye, or heart hence causing seizures.
Helminths, parasitic worms such as tapeworms, roundworms, and flukes, can be detected about 2 to 3 months after ingesting contaminated meat through a series of stool samples. While this meat is an excellent source of vitamins and minerals such as thiamine, zinc, iron, vitamin B12, and vitamin B6, you should follow food safety guidelines and ensure the meat you consume has been cooked to the appropriate temperature. Those with a compromised immune system such as pregnancy, cancer treatment therapy, HIV/AIDS, and diabetes should be exceptionally very careful about where their food is coming from and that it’s being properly prepared.
You won’t be able to tell if your pork is infected or not just by looking at it since these larvae are microscopic. Therefore, the best defense against these infections is cooking your pork thoroughly.Pork is a must-have meal for Kenyans in major cities, including Nairobi. It is prevalent in joints and butcheries within and outside the CBD.
Recent research, Nairobi Pork Value Chain, shows that Kenya’s current per capita consumption of pork is 0.4 kg, bovine meat at 12.2 kilograms, mutton/goat at 2.2 kilograms, and poultry at 0.6 kg consumption is fast increasing.
