It killed an entire family, Fasikh in Egypt between the love of taste and the dangers of poisoning

Fesikh has a delicious taste and is very popular among Egyptians, but doctors warn of the dangers of the health consequences of eating it and the poisoning, shortness of breath and complications that may endanger the lives of those who eat it.

Salted fish, especially fesikh, herring and salinity, top the Egyptian tables during holidays and special occasions such as Sham El-Nessim (Spring Festival) and Eid al-Fitr. It secretes toxins that affect the nervous system of the person consuming it.

And the Egyptian media reported on Monday that the security services in the Beheira governorate received a notification from Etiai Al-Baroud Hospital to receive the reciter Sayed Ahmed Issa, his wife and son, the doctor Mohamed Sayed, and 5 of his grandchildren, who are in a state of severe poisoning after eating a toxic meal of seach, and first aid failed to save their lives. They breathed their last, while medical staff were able to save the lives of the grandchildren.

Despite the delicious taste and the great popularity that fesikh enjoys among the Egyptians, doctors warn of the serious health consequences of eating it and what causes poisoning, shortness of breath and complications that may endanger the lives of those who eat it.

It goes back to the ancient Egyptians

Fesikh is considered one of the seasonal Egyptian dishes. Egyptians eat it on the first day of Eid al-Fitr in the morning to open their appetite after a month of fasting, during which they avoid eating salty foods so as not to cause them thirst during the fasting month.

Many Egyptians also believe that eating salted fish in its various forms and types after leaving the fasting month is a necessity, because the body needs this type of food to motivate them to drink the largest amount of water, after the body has lost irreplaceable amounts of water between Iftar and Suhoor.

Fesikh is considered to be a type of “buri” fish, and it is fermented by drying it with salt, which is an ancient traditional method for preserving food from spoilage before the invention of modern refrigeration devices, and thus the history of its manufacture and eating goes back to the ancient Egyptians, who were celebrating Sham El-Nessim as well, as historians say that the ancient Egyptians They began celebrating it officially since the end of the Third Dynasty in the year 2700 BC, thus becoming the oldest popular holiday in Egypt, and perhaps in the entire human history.

Fesikh is characterized by a pungent odor. It is called al-Feskhani, who salts the mullet fish after drying it completely from the water, and then pickles it for more than 15 days in tightly closed wooden barrels and prevents the air from it. Wooden barrels are the best for making salted fish, because they do not contain Materials that react with fesikh, such as plastic barrels.

Health disaster

Egyptian doctors and officials warn of the dangers of consuming fesikh on an annual basis, as it puts the life of the eater at serious risk, starting with sick symptoms such as vomiting, diarrhea, nausea and severe colic, passing through sometimes high body temperature, to poisoning.

Doctors note that the most prominent symptoms of poisoning are blurred vision, double vision, dryness in the throat, difficulty speaking and swallowing, muscle weakness that begins in the shoulders and upper extremities and moves to the rest of the body, in addition to shortness of breath, while these symptoms may lead the patient to death.

Doctor Mahmoud Mohamed Amr, founder of the National Center for Poisons, stressed that eating fesikh is a health disaster, because it is often not a guaranteed source, and it includes components harmful to human health such as excessive thick salts, and the growth of beta- linium bacteria, which can kill a person within only two hours.

Amr added in an interview with the Egyptian newspaper Youm7, that eating fesikh raises blood pressure, and may cause pregnant women to abort, in addition to circulatory problems and other brain problems.

For his part, Dr. Hussein Abdo said, "Fesikh increases the risk of cancer, as the body converts salted, smoked and pickled foods in this way to the N-nitrozo compound (NOC), which is linked to a greater risk of cancer."