Is something in your freezer waiting to kill you?

Common popular foods that are as dangerous as poison.

Courtesy: Brian Henry Thompson

Have you ever thought your favorite foods can kill you? Unknowingly in your own freezer, you may have stored some poisonous foods that you think are delicious & healthy. But actually, they are not. So, let’s have a look at six common yet popular foods that are as dangerous as poison.

Processed meat: -

Well, these days it's very hard to find that type of person who doesn't like junk foods. But do you know that these tasty foods can kill you? Confused? Let’s clear all your confusions here.

We all are familiar with processed meat, by name & taste also. Among us how many people don't like to eat pizza, burger, subway sandwich or K.F.C chicken? Other popular food products of processed meat are - sausages, hot dog, salami etc. which are also very popular in India. Those meats which are used in pizza, burger, subway sandwiches, and K.F.C chicken, all are processed meat. But do you know the detailed fact of the processed meat?

Processed meat has been made to improve the taste of the meat and the processing also extends its shelf life. But according to W.H.O processed meat ranks in group 1 carcinogenic to human as it causes colorectal cancer. According to new research from global market intelligence agency Mintel, India has become second fastest growing processed meat & poultry market. If you think you are a health-conscious person & you only eat home-made meat, chicken & fish then be ready for another shocking information. A recent investigation by Saturday vision reveals that many shopkeepers & food vendors across the country use formalin drugs & other illegal chemicals to keep the meat fresh & flies away.

Courtesy: Youtube

Even broiler chickens are not safe to eat, as many poultrymen mix harmful chemicals, antibiotics with their foods & inject some deadly steroid hormones into their bodies in order to produce maximum meat, gain fat & grow faster. Eating this chicken regularly can cause various side effects on our health like cancer, male infertility, early puberty in females, obesity. Even it is said that 1 roasted broiler chicken leg is equally injurious to 60 cigarettes. Because cooking at high temperature can change the protein molecules in the broiler chicken which causes harmful side effects. So, after knowing all these brutal facts now it is up to you to decide whether you should eat these food products or not.

Ajinomoto: -

In our list, the next food is a salt, named Monosodium Glutamate / MSG which is generally known as Ajinomoto. But Ajinomoto itself is not the salt; it is the trade name of a Japanese food company. This salt is generally used in Chinese cuisine to increase its flavor and it is also called flavor enhancer. Even in India, this ingredient is used in every Chinese dish. Even now these days it is used in pizzas, burgers and these all are enjoyed by people of all ages. Ajinomoto makes your tongue feels a fifth taste called "Umami". MSG is an anti-appetite suppressant that makes you crave for more food with that taste. MSG has severe negative effects on health like- headache, sweating, numbness, burning in the face, neck & other areas, nausea etc. If one takes it on daily basis then he will be affected by obesity, cancer and it is also indicated as a trigger in those who prone to asthma attacks. Even it affects fertility. So, consuming it during pregnancy is never a good idea as it has been linked to sterility.

Cherry seeds/pits: -

In our list, the next one is cherry seed. Cherry is very popular among people, especially among children. Cherry is used for cooking; liquor production or it can be eaten raw. Not only for taste but also for its red fleshy look it is used for food decoration. You can use it to decorate cake, ice-cream and many other food products. But do you know that cherry seed contains cyanide? A single cherry seed yields roughly 0.17 grams of lethal cyanide per gram. So, according to the estimate, almost 588 seeds are enough to kill a human being.  Whereas an apple seed contains 0.49 mg of cyanide.

Maybe you need to swallow tons of cherry seeds to get a lethal dosage but medical science is also concerned about children, as they don't have a strong immunity system. That's why Dr. Kantor said, "Spit out your cherry seeds because they contain the poisonous compound hydrogen cyanide".

Raw cashews: -

Cashews are very common & popular food. But before buying it make sure that these cashews have been steamed & are not totally raw. Because raw cashew contains a dangerous chemical name Urushoil which is as poisonous as poison ivy & poison sumac. From cashew tree, you can eat the cashew apple, the fleshy red, yellow part, which is attached to the cashew nut. It's not harmful. You can eat it raw or can make alcohol from its juice. But ingesting raw cashew is as dangerous as intaking poison. Because it causes the body to have a very similar reaction from poison oak or poison ivy. If a high level of urushiol is ingested, it can be deadly. There are some steps to make it edible & most of the time what we see in the market all are steamed in 177-degree Celsius to remove this chemical. Even those who handle raw cashews always use gloves while processing it.

Kidney beans / Rajma: -

Kidney bean, popularly known as Rajma in India, also cannot be eaten raw because of a deadly chemical called “Phytohemagglutinin”. If it is not cooked in a proper way then it causes severe nausea, vomiting & diarrhea within 1-3 hours after consumption. It is made edible by removing the chemical through soaking it in water for overnight and boiling them for 30 minutes to destroy the toxin completely. It should be heated in a proper temperature while cooking otherwise cooking it at the lower temperature of 80-degree Celsius, will increase the toxin concentration up to fivefold & undercooked rajma is more poisonous than raw rajma. Most of the time in a restaurant they don't maintain these proper ways as they don't know how to cook it properly. So before ordering it makes sure they are well cooked & safe for ingesting.

Mushroom: -

Mushroom is a very popular and common food in our country which is enjoyed by both vegetarians and non-vegetarians. Currently, more than 10,000 types of mushrooms have been identified by experts, which is only a fraction of the whole. Among its 20% mushrooms are poisonous. Another fact is that till now experts have identified only 50-60 species of poisonous mushrooms and rests are still unknown to them. The effect of poisonous mushroom is so dangerous that it causes vomiting, diarrhea, high blood pressure, liver failure & leads a person in a coma. Even many people are prone to suffer from allergy by eating mushrooms. Though in our country at present mushrooms are cultivated in a proper way and we only eat the known traditional mushrooms. But it is very difficult to differentiate between poisonous and edible mushrooms. So next time if you see a mushroom which you have known as an edible mushroom, don't try to taste it as same looking mushrooms can be poisonous too & it can, not only make you sick but can snatch your life away.

So next time before ingesting these foods think twice as all foods are not made to give you life rather can take your life within a few minutes.

Source: Rediff.com, LinkedIn, Etretail.com & wikipedia.