Hacker News Reader

Comment by clumsysmurf | Hacker News Reader

> They may eat undercooked snails or inadvertently eat an infected slug or snail hiding in their unwashed salad.

Should we be worrying about salad? I always do my best to wash stuff like broccoli, etc but I always assume things "slip through".

View on HN

I found a snail, only about 3mm long, in a thoroughly-washed arugula salad I made at home. They can be small enough to be easily overlooked and at the same time large enough to not wash through the holes of a colander, and they may be stuck on the leaves instead of falling out like stones.

Same here, on multiple occasions. Probably very unscientific of me but I'm sort of thinking that rucola (arugula) may be more prone to slug hitchhiking than other greens? That's in part why I tend to favor watercress, not without its share of nasty parasite risks [1] but have so far never found slugs in it.

[1] https://www.cdc.gov/parasites/fasciola/index.html

I've found that if you let the greens soak in water for a while the slugs and snails will fall off. Might not work for all types but it's worth a shot

I'm very thorough with my broccoli washing, and even the most densely packed broccoli florets will have insects right at the point they meet the smallest stem. I essentially stopped worrying about it - assuming - we're all eating bugs - maybe lots - and we don't see any widespread disease. But now maybe this is about to change, one more thing to add to my laundry list of anxieties :(

Don't you boil the broccoli for a while too? (Then any snails and worms die?)

Broccoli makes good salads or just a snack (eaten with ranch dressing).

Yes, if they're not already washed. https://www.cdc.gov/foodsafety/communication/leafy-greens.ht...

Try preparing leeks and if you can do it without biting sand your vegetable washing strategy is probably pretty good.

Leeks are easier than salad though. The part with the roots is "closed" so just cut off the tip and rinse a bit. For the end with the leaves you make a 3-4 cm lengthwise cut where the stem ends, then you can hold this part open and rinse under running water.

In either case I chop the vegetable up and go through three rounds of submerging, agitating, and straining. Seems to do the job.

Hah! I’ve got a long way to go.

two of my family members are chemists at usda. they dont eat fruit or produce except the kind you can peel like oranges and bananas. plants are covered in feces, worms, pesticides and you cant sit there with a toothbrush scrubbing it all off. a quick rinse isnt going to do shit. especially for the pesticides. also its become clear that most plants arent good for your health even when they arent covered in terrible shit.

Given that I eat lettuce every day, how come I never got rat lungworm? Am I incredibly lucky? Or is getting it from lettuce incredibly rare?

The parasite is mainly in Hawai'i (it reported said that many Hawai'ians do not eat salads anymore) and now Florida, expanding northwards in North America.

Up in Canada I've been eating my garden leafy greens, but experts say global warming and globalization are involved in the spread.

This year they found rat lungworm in Valencia, Spain. Experts are calling this an emerging disease problem, previously confined to tropic and subtropical countries.

This is one good application for indoor/vertical farming.

Most aren't, but this one is.

Soon we will all be eating hydroponic lettuce

because you live in a privileged fairyland. other worms, like those found in pork, are common in countries that dont eliminate them in the food supply. people get sick from drinking tap water. if north america had to drpemd on washing their hands to prevent worms instead of being babied by the gorvernmemt, wed be worse off than india.

Western Europe. Is that a privileged fairyland?

You write like you've been sniffing paint fumes.

yes, western europe is probably the most privileged place on planet earth. im not sure how you thought that was clever

Wait I thought you hated government? Western Europe is privileged because government enforces regulations.

It works really well, you should come by and check it out. Get in touch, I'll find you a place to stay.

wow you are remarkably stupid. i said the government babies us, which is true, and says nothing about whether i like or dislike the government. i will not be getting in touch because you are a vapid idiot.

I am curious for more about their choices but, what? Most plants aren't good for your health?

If they truly work at USDA they can't be of the opinion that most meat in the US is any good...

What exactly do they eat?

lol

> Should we be worrying about salad?

Not in the Southeast US...

Reply on news.ycombinator.com