Seafood is delicious, nutritious, and a favorite for many, but eating seafood also requires attention to certain dietary taboos. Who should avoid eating seafood?
Who Should Avoid Eating Seafood
1. Gout patients should eat less shrimp and crab
Seafood is a high-protein and high-purine food. If you have been diagnosed with hyperuricemia or have a history of gout, excessive consumption of shrimp and crab can easily aggravate or trigger a gout attack. Such individuals may appear no different from others before an attack, but once it strikes, in severe cases, they may lose the ability to move normally and require assistance from family members.
2. People with allergies or skin diseases should avoid seafood
In addition to gout, eating seafood and aquatic products can easily trigger skin allergies in people with allergic constitutions. Seafood is also not suitable for those with skin diseases or sores. After consumption, people with allergies may experience systemic itching, wheal-like rashes, and intense itching as allergic reactions. Since individuals often have different constitutions and varying severity of conditions, the best advice upon developing allergy symptoms is to seek treatment at a specialized hospital and not to self-medicate blindly.
3. Pregnant and breastfeeding women should avoid tuna and swordfish
With increasing marine pollution in recent years, the mercury content in seafood has also risen. If pregnant and breastfeeding women consume seafood more than four times a week (over 100 grams each time), it can affect the nervous system development of the fetus and newborn. Therefore, they should eat less seafood, preferably avoiding high-mercury sea fish like tuna and swordfish.
4. For those with a weak digestive system, strengthen the spleen before eating more seafood
Liang Wen mentioned that autumn is a high season for spleen and stomach diseases in traditional Chinese medicine, which is somewhat related to eating seafood. Therefore, after autumn begins, people with a weak digestive system should focus on strengthening the spleen. A weak digestive system means poor function and a constitution that leans towards deficiency and cold. Seafood is generally neutral, often cool, and high in protein. If people with a weak digestive system consume a large amount of seafood, it can lead to poor digestion and diarrhea. If you have a weak digestive system but still want to eat more seafood, what should you do? You need to strengthen the spleen. "According to traditional Chinese medicine theory, conditions like hyperuricemia and stomach discomfort are often caused by damp-heat retained in the body. For dietary health, one should consume more things that eliminate damp-heat, such as damp-removing tea, or soups made from ingredients like Job's tears, Smilax glabra, Poria, kapok flowers, or Artemisia capillaris." Once the spleen and stomach functions are regulated and digestion is improved, you can eat seafood with fewer concerns.