4 The dangers of eating undercooked chicken (plus features

Chicken meat is a favorite menu in Indonesia. Maybe in a week you can eat chicken more than three times. Chicken is healthy, but you have to be careful. Eating uncooked chicken meat can cause contamination of various types of bacteria or viruses.

What diseases can occur if you eat chicken that is not cooked yet? How do you tell whether a chicken is cooked or not? This is the answer.

Why can't you eat uncooked chicken?

In the body of chickens, there are various types of bacteria, viruses, and parasites that will survive even though the chicken is dead. This is because these organisms are still attached to their host in the chicken's body.

Meanwhile, cooking chicken to a temperature of at least 74 degrees Celsius can kill a wide variety of disease-causing organisms. Chicken can be consumed safely when it is cooked perfectly.

So, eating uncooked or even raw chicken has the risk of causing these four dangerous diseases.

1. Typhus

Typhus or typhoid fever is caused by a bacterial infection Salmonella typhi. These bacteria live and reproduce in the body of livestock chickens. However, it does not mean that livestock chickens are full of bacteria Salmonella typhi. Usually this transmission occurs when a person or chicken trader who has been contaminated with the bacteria touches the chicken you bought.

If you have typhus, you may have to be hospitalized. Especially if you experience diarrhea, bleeding, or serious indigestion. Typhoid symptoms usually appear a few days to two weeks after you eat immature chicken meat that contains bacteria. Symptoms include high fever, muscle aches, stomach pain, nausea, weakness, and loss of appetite. If not treated immediately, typhus can cause death.

2. Bird flu

The virus that causes bird flu, namely H5N1, had an epidemic in Indonesia. The virus that lives in the body of chickens and other birds can be transmitted to humans. Especially if you eat uncooked chicken that has been infected with bird flu.

Symptoms of this disease include coughing, difficulty breathing, sore throat, fever, muscle aches, runny nose, and diarrhea. Like other infections, this virus can cause death if left untreated.

According to the recommendations of the World Health Organization (WHO), cooking chicken until the temperature of the meat reaches 74 degrees Celsius can kill the H5N1 virus. However, even though it has been cooked perfectly, you should not eat chicken meat from farms that have contracted bird flu.

3.Stomach flu (gastroenteritis)

Gastroenteritis is the medical term for stomach flu. The stomach flu itself is inflammation of the stomach or intestines due to infection. This disease is usually discovered after eating food contaminated with viruses, bacteria, or parasites. Uncooked chicken can also cause stomach flu.

Symptoms that may appear are stomach pain, diarrhea, vomiting, fever, chills, and dehydration. The appearance of these symptoms can take 1-3 days after eating contaminated food.

4. Guillain-Barre syndrome

This disease can cause muscle weakness to paralysis. The cause is a bacterial infection Campylobacter which may live in chicken. If left untreated, the paralysis can spread throughout the body so that you can just breathe. You have to use tools.

If you experience symptoms such as itching of the hands and feet, muscle pain, low blood pressure, irregular heartbeat, difficulty breathing, difficulty swallowing, and difficulty moving, see your doctor immediately. Guillain-Barre syndrome should be treated in a hospital immediately.

The characteristics of uncooked chicken meat

After knowing the dangers, don't be reckless or try to eat chicken that has not been cooked perfectly. In order to avoid the risk of disease due to eating undercooked chicken, pay attention to the color carefully. If the meat is still slightly red or pink or you are unsure, don't eat it. Cooked chicken meat is white to the inside.

Apart from the appearance of the meat, also pay attention to the texture of the meat. If your chicken is chewy, tough, and difficult to chew, it means it's not cooked yet. Cooked chicken should be soft, fibrous, and easy to chew.