When it comes to food, we always have this notion in our minds: the fresher the food, the better it is to eat. The fresher the food, the higher its nutritional value, and the better it is for our bodies. Is this really the case? Of course not. Some foods are actually harmful to your health when eaten fresh. Which foods should not be eaten "fresh"?
Jellyfish
Fresh jellyfish contains a lot of water, has a thicker body, and also contains toxins. Only after being salted and alum-pickled three times (commonly known as "three alum") to dehydrate the fresh jellyfish three times can the toxins be completely removed with the water. After the "three alum" process, the jellyfish should be light red or light yellow, evenly thick and tough, and no water should be squeezed out even when pressed hard. This is the jellyfish that is safe to eat. When traveling to jellyfish-producing areas, you may encounter vendors selling jellyfish that has not been treated or has only been salted once or twice. You must absolutely not taste or buy it.
Fresh Daylilies
Also known as golden needles, unprocessed fresh daylilies contain colchicine. Colchicine itself is non-toxic, but after being eaten, it is oxidized in the body into highly toxic colchicine dioxide. According to experimental estimates, as little as 3 milligrams of colchicine is enough to cause nausea, vomiting, headache, and abdominal pain. A larger amount can lead to hematuria or hematochezia, and 20 milligrams can be fatal. Dried daylilies are steamed and processed, during which the colchicine is leached out, making them non-toxic.
Fresh Pickled Vegetables
Fresh vegetables all contain a certain amount of non-toxic nitrate. During the pickling process, it is reduced into toxic nitrite. Generally, nitrite levels start to increase significantly 4 hours after pickling, peak between 14 and 20 days, and then gradually decrease. Therefore, you should either eat pickled vegetables within 4 hours, or eat them after they have been pickled for more than 30 days. Nitrite can cause hypoxia symptoms such as cyanosis, and it can also combine with secondary amines in food to form carcinogenic nitrosamines.
Fresh Wood Ear Mushrooms
They contain a photosensitive substance called porphyrin. After consumption, if exposed to sunlight, it can cause skin itching and edema. In severe cases, it can lead to skin necrosis. If edema occurs in the pharyngeal mucosa, it can cause difficulty in breathing. Dried wood ear mushrooms are the finished product that has been sun-dried. During the sun-drying process, most of the porphyrin is decomposed. Before consumption, the dried mushrooms are soaked in water, and any remaining toxins will dissolve in the water, making the rehydrated dried mushrooms non-toxic.
Bottled Water
Commercially bottled water, whether it's distilled water, reverse osmosis water, mineral water, or other purified water, is usually treated with ozone as a final disinfection step before being bottled. Therefore, newly filled bottled water will contain a relatively high concentration of ozone. Ozone is a toxic substance to humans. If you drink it "fresh," you will undoubtedly ingest this toxin along with the water. If you let the bottled water sit for another 1 to 2 days, the ozone will naturally dissipate, and then you can drink it without worrying about ingesting toxins. According to regulations, bottled water must pass an inspection before it can leave the factory, and this process takes 48 hours. Therefore, drinking bottled water that has been inspected and left the factory according to regulations is the safest.
These five foods should not be eaten fresh! Fresh jellyfish contains toxins and needs to be artificially treated before consumption to avoid food poisoning. Fresh daylilies contain colchicine and can cause poisoning. Therefore, it is better for us to eat "not fresh" daylilies. The wood ear mushrooms we usually eat are all dried; don't be tempted to eat fresh ones.