What happens if you eat raw meat. Answered by nutritionist

founder of the International Institute of Integrative Nutritionology

Why should you not eat raw meat? How can it be dangerous?

Raw meat and poultry are the main carriers of salmonellosis, campylobacteriosis and toxic infections caused by opportunistic bacteria.

Why you should not eat raw meat

The idea of eating raw meat is questionable, because pork, beef, chicken and rabbit meat can also contain toxoplasmosis pathogens. This parasitic disease runs in a latent form without manifestation of characteristic symptoms, so before a person learns about the infection, it can take quite a long time, which will lead to serious poisoning.

To the most dangerous from this point of view types of raw meat include pork and poultry meat – chicken and duck. Raw chicken is a source of a special type of bacteria dangerous to humans – campylobacter. The entry of these microbes into the digestive system leads to the development of campylobacteriosis. Most often these bacteria are ingested with poorly cooked and semi-cooked food. Heat treatment neutralizes them.

Why chicken breast in general is not the best source of protein, read in the material at the link.

What about tartare and steaks?

Nevertheless, many restaurants and cafes include raw meat and fish dishes on their menus. If salmon and tuna, as well as quality meat have a mark of biological safety, which is confirmed by a certified laboratory, it is acceptable to eat them raw. That is, French beef tartare with sauce and delicate appetizers of ocean fish can be eaten if you are confident in the institution.

Meat must meet the strictest requirements. For beef, this is GOST 33818-2016 “Meat. Beef of high quality. Technical conditions.” Such a certificate guarantees that cattle are raised on farms in compliance with veterinary and zootechnical requirements, without the use of growth stimulants, hormones and antibiotics, on natural feed.

Who should not eat even good quality raw meat

Tartare, carpaccio, roast beef and steaks with a pink center will not harm the body. But provided your digestive tract is healthy. The digestive system is not designed to digest meat and fish in raw form, so it is more difficult to break down this product, and amino acids from raw meat are worse digested.

People with gastrointestinal diseases, such as peptic ulcer, gastritis, enzyme deficiency and others, it is better to refuse raw delicacies.

Raw meat or fish slightly overtake heat-treated products by the amount of useful substances. For example, raw beef contains 64% of the daily norm of vitamin B12 per 100 g of product. In a cooked piece of meat (even grilled) vitamin B12 will be 60% of the daily norm – only 4% less than in the raw form.

There is no need to experiment with raw meat and eat exotic dishes. If you want to taste a raw delicacy, give preference to salmon or tuna tartare, but provided that the fish is fresh and has not been frozen. Repeated freezing increases the risk of infection with salmonella and other bacteria and often provokes food poisoning.

The best way to prevent contamination is thorough heat treatment. Dishes should be fully cooked.

What to do if you accidentally ate raw meat

If suddenly you ate a piece of undercooked meat, you should not panic. It is enough to drink one of the sorbents – special medicines that help the body to excrete harmful substances. It is also recommended to temporarily remove meat from the diet, drink more water and chamomile tea for prevention.

Not only raw meat can be dangerous, but also cooked meat. Read more about it in the article at the link.