Disinfection and Detoxification: Clean Diet

Author: Song Weimin Lu Yuelian
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2006-09-01
Features: 5. The Dangers of Eating Wild Animals
Wild animals are often referred to as "wild delicacies," including those that walk on the ground, crawl, fly in the sky, and swim in the water. Among them, many are Class I and II protected species, as well as rare, endangered, unique, and critically endangered animals. Each animal is a unique gene pool. The extinction of one species means the destruction of a gene pool, and it means that our colorful world will forever lose a friend and helper bestowed upon us by nature. Wise people urge: For the sake of our future generations, give them a complete and beautiful world: Never turn our dining tables into slaughterhouses for extinct wild animals! (1) Gluttony Can Lead to an Ecological Disaster: An authoritative study shows that China accounts for 156 of the internationally recognized 640 endangered wild animal species. In a country of 1.3 billion people, once a certain animal becomes a delicacy, its fate is sealed. Here’s a chilling survey: A 2000 January 20 survey on the status of wild animal consumption in China revealed that 49.8% (688) of 1,381 restaurants, 15.4% (44) of 286 food markets, and 41.7% (91) of 218 open-air markets were engaged in selling wild animals. Most wild animals are natural predators of agricultural pests: One snake can catch 60 mice in a year, while one mouse can devour 5 kilograms of grain annually. In a large city, consuming 1 million frogs each year means "eating" away 1 million kilograms of grain! The survival or extinction of one species affects the life or death of many related species. Research shows that the extinction of one plant can lead to the destruction of 10 to 30 other plants, insects, and higher animals that depend on it. Nature's food chain and ecological web are interconnected, and a single disruption can impact the entire ecosystem. Among the world's 4,650 known mammal species, one in four is listed as "high-risk" and faces imminent extinction. 182 bird species are on the brink of extinction, while 20% of amphibians, reptiles, and 30% of fish face the same fate. Some people believe that "wild" means "natural," but it's not always safe. Many natural plants are inherently toxic, and eating wild animals is even more perilous. (2) Be Careful of Diseases When Eating Wild Delicacies: The trend of eating wild delicacies is rampant in some regions. Whether it’s gazelles, wild deer, badgers, wild rabbits, or pheasants, or small insects like scorpions and grasshoppers, they have all become delicacies on dining tables. It’s important to know that many wild animals can carry and spread diseases, including zoonotic diseases. Some pathogens, such as bacteria, viruses, rickettsiae, spirochetes, and protozoa, are stored, carried, and transmitted by animals. Reports indicate that over 60 types of wild animals, including muntjacs, deer, wild boars, capybaras, wild cattle, wild rabbits, squirrels, marmots, foxes, red foxes, wolves, antelopes, rock sheep, and gazelles, can not only be infected with diseases like brucellosis, Erysipelothrix rhusiopathiae, Listeria monocytogenes, tularemia, pseudotuberculosis, plague, anthrax, hemorrhagic fever, leptospirosis, and certain protozoal diseases but can also transmit these illnesses to humans. Some of these diseases, such as plague, anthrax, Listeria monocytogenes, hemorrhagic fever, leptospirosis, and echinococcosis, are extremely dangerous and have high mortality rates. In Northwest China and Inner Mongolia, there have been cases where hunting and eating marmots and foxes led to dozens of deaths from plague. Additionally, many animals share diseases with humans, such as rabies, foot-and-mouth disease, influenza, anthrax, and Japanese encephalitis, which are more easily transmitted between humans, livestock, and animals. Furthermore, the mold and parasites on animals can cause over 160 different diseases. ① Wild Animals Carry Many Parasites and Pathogens: Up to 91% of frogs are infected with the parasitic Dicrocoelium dendriticum. Once the larvae enter the human body, they often in soft tissues and internal organs. If they in the brain, they can cause blindness, paralysis, convulsions, and epilepsy. ② Wild Animals Contain Toxic and Harmful Chemicals: Pesticide and cantharidin pollution in frog meat, lead pollution, and chemical weapon-induced contamination have tainted pangolins, making Vietnamese people reluctant to eat them. Some people enjoy snake bile and fish bile, only to suffer acute poisoning and liver and kidney failure. ③ Wild Animals Transmit Viral Diseases: The 2003 SARS outbreak caused by the SARS virus made people further aware of the dangers of eating wild animals. On May 27, 2003, the Ministry of Agriculture's Animal Coronavirus Epidemic Source Investigation Team announced that coronaviruses had been detected in bats, monkeys, pangolins, and snakes, with genetic sequences identical to those of the SARS virus. As a result, some people called for legislation to ban the consumption of wild animals. Some have discovered that HIV may have originated in chimpanzees, and due to "close contact" between Africans and them, it has since spread to humans. ④ Some poachers use toxic methods to capture wild animals, even using highly toxic pesticides. Eating such poisoned wild delicacies can lead to acute poisoning or chronic, latent harm to human health. All of these serve as a warning to those who dare to try new things. Abstaining from eating wild animals should start with us and our families, becoming civilized and law-abiding citizens, and taking action to stop illegal sellers of wild animals.