Eating raw seafood such as fish and oysters is a popular pastime in Taiwan. However, a recent case of cholera may have some people thinking twice.
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Taiwan is a popular destination for seafood lovers, with a wide variety of fresh catches all over the island. But if you love to eat seafood by the bucketload, especially if it's raw, you could be at risk of consuming Vibrio cholerae, the bacteria responsible for cholera.
On Thursday, the CDC announced Taiwan’s first case of cholera this year. The patient is a man in his 20s, who began feeling symptoms on June 28th. After seeking medical attention, the man was confirmed to have a cholera infection on July 5th. The suspected source? Sashimi and raw oysters he had eaten the day before the onset of his symptoms.
Su Chih-sheng (蘇志盛), a physician from Taiwan Adventist Hospital says that the bacteria responsible for cholera can live in water for quite a long time, which is why infections sometimes come from eating seafood. The incubation period can vary from a few hours up to five days. Symptoms such as nausea, vomiting and diarrhea, and fever usually manifest around 2-3 days after infection.
Authorities say detecting Vibrio cholerae in food samples is challenging, making it difficult to determine the exact source of contamination. The source of the contamination in this case is still being investigated.