Fish Poisoning is real nasty

Ciguatera still plays havoc within my body after 18 years now… I am very active compared to the past but trying to push the boundaries just sets the muscle “disability” into pain so I am still learning boundaries… makes life slow..  Please make sure your family and friends are all aware of this maotoxin… let them read it all for themselves online.. there isnt much change in information, study, awareness or help in the last 18 years..  not good people.

I am living in a new neighbourhood now and got talking to neighbours and would you believe one neighbour has had her time with this poison.  She was attacked with the poison after eating fish up north queensland and was flown to a hospital for care.  The doctors didnt have a clue what was wrong with her.. she says she was in hospital for 18 months, horribly sick … they suggested that they “operate” and open her up to “take a look”.. can you believe they would do this to someone… just for their own observation! Holy moly!!  poor girl… she said NO!!

It turns out they never helped her… like me.. put her in a TOO HARD BASKET and sent her home to get on with it…  terrible! She seems to lead a normal life now and works hard physically so she recovered well. She did admit that her muscular system was not attacked; she suffered more the nervous and digestive system but avoids fish or only eats little fillets.. her family are all aware of it.

It seems, more of us have had it, suffer it or will at some time come across it… I so wish this would get into the more main stream media… globally… this is all around the world and was here before we were… we should be told about this; it should be common knowledge that BIG FISH ARE DANGEROUS…  take care…  anyone got a friend in main media..?

Good luck and dont eat fish, canned tuna, salmon…  and more …. please read up on it wherever you can.

MORE CIGUATERA ATTACKS…

CIGUATERA is getting more active around the world… I am getting 2-3 emails each week from people who are getting it and this worries me a lot… making an ebook for this now so I can get it out more easily to others… you know I have had this 18 years now and NO NEW INFORMATION is available…! No help for sufferers, no support and no life… does anyone know anyone or how I can get more information and awareness out there in public? SOMETHING HAS TO BE DONE…. I still suffer the consequences even though I am fairly well these days.. I have been writing to television and newspapers for years and they just ignore it… send out help people… thanks

This is a small welt from the inside, this attacks you everywhere and there is no where to get relief from the itching burning pain and miserable symptoms of this poison… its DEADLY POISON people, lets get awareness out there…

   This is one of the welts – these cover the body when active and it means itching burning pain from the inside and it does not let up… day and night…  this is POISON… deadly POISON people… please tell everyone you know. Even if they laugh at you…  !</div>

FISH & CHIPS FOR DINNER IS NO LONGER SAFE !!

18 March, 2014 3:37PM AEST
Call for ciguatera awareness after 17 cases in Townsville
By Nathalie Fernbach with Paula Tapiolas

The partner of a woman who developed ciguatera poisoning after eating fish and chips is calling for greater awareness of the toxin.

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Seventeen people presented at the Townsville Hospital over the weekend with ciguatera poisoning.

Brett McGuire says his family all ate fish and chips on Saturday night, shortly afterward his wife Sarah developed diarrhoea, tingling around her mouth, numbness in her hands and feet, uncontrollable itching and severe pain.

“Growing up in north Queensland I had known of (ciguatera) but I think what we found was that there is really not much awareness of it and what it actually is,” he said.

Diagnosing ciguatera poisoning

Mr McGuire says hospital staff were caring but many had not dealt with ciguatera poisoning before.

“It was quite surprising and a bit disheartening how much the health professionals themselves didn’t know much about it either so it made it hard for them to diagnose and to treat,” he said.

The ciguatera toxin comes from an algae that small reef fish consume, larger predatory fish can build up high doses of the toxin from eating smaller reef fish.

Mr McGuire would like to see more public information about ciguatera poisoning made available and upper limits on fish size introduced for some species.

“Recreational fishermen know that large fish carry bad things so they catch and release, whereas I suppose the commercial fishermen they catch a big fish they say ‘oh well I can cut this large mackerel up into 20 different fillets and sell it on,'” he said.

17 cases very unusual

Director of emergency at the Townsville Hospital Doctor Niall Small says it is not unusual to see ciguatera cases but it is rare to have so many cases at once.

“One of the big problems is that we really don’t understand what causes the symptoms, we know about the toxin but we don’t know what causes the symptoms so we are slightly limited in what treatment we can use,” he said.

Dr Small says the best way to avoid ciguatera is to avoid large predatory fish like mackerel and pelagics and find out what fish you are buying when you eat out.

“Don’t buy mixed reef fillets because there is a risk that the wrong kind of fish has been chopped up and added to the mixed reef fillets,” he said.

Ciguatera on the rise

Ciguatera researcher Doctor Mark Skinner says the algae that causes ciguatera is becoming more dominant in the ecosystem.

Dr Skinner advises people not to eat fish over 2kgs in weight and to avoid the meat around the head and intestines.

He says the poisoning can be debilitating for weeks or months and if people consume the toxin again they are likely to have worse symptoms the second time.

“We know that the toxin is built up in the fatty tissues of fish so quite obviously there is no reason for it not to build up in the fatty tissues of mammals and so it can take quite some time to get out of the system,” he said.

WATCH OUT FOR FISH POISONING – Ciguatera

I have had CIGUATERA FISH POISONING for almost 13 years now and suffered enormous pain, burning skin and itching beyond belief causing a lot difficulty during those years. The Ciguatera Fish Poison is not a new poison but been around our planet from birth. It is caused by fish eating weed on DYING CORAL & ROCK which has the Ciguatera toxin contained within it. When the fish grows to 3kilos or a larger fish eats it, the ciguatera toxins are generated into the flesh of the fish and it becomes fatal to small mammals and some humans. There are many cases of deaths in recent years around the globe.

The ciguatera toxin contains 5 other toxins within it and is 1000 times more powerful than arsenic poisoning so it is very detrimental to ones health and well being if you happen to ingest it. OFTEN mis-diagnosed for MS, Skin problems, Mental problems and anything else they can think of because it is so little known about. I have known only one GP in many years who was a little familiar. Not one GP ever offered to help me look and learn!?

There is NO blood test for this however the ITCH & BURN is often the way this is diagnosed and redness, burning and intense itching of palms of hands, inner mouth, throat etc all at the onset especially. This subsides (sometimes) and changes into other symptoms; it moves about your body and attacks are recurrent depending on diet and activity. Some people can continue to work and have a fairly normal life, often reporting a re-attack when eating sea foods, chicken etc… others…. suffer horribly and it changes their life forever, permanently and its real!! One’s hot and cold feelings become opposite as the nervous system is affected. Nausea, weight loss, loss of balance and thinking abilities, loss of muscular ability, amongst a myriad of other symptoms.

YOU DO NOT WANT TO GET CIGUATERA FISH POISONING so please educate yourself now

I hope this site will bring in stories from others who are suffering and some more information on how to cope with this insidious poison. I welcome and invite everyone to have their say, write their story and tell us your information on eating habits and maintaining a lifestyle.

I have written a small book called LIVING WITH CIGUATERA FISH POISONING and welcome anyone to purchase it as an e-book from Xlibris, Amazon and other book stores. It is available as a soft cover for $20 plus postage and hard covers are available. I am happy to donate a book to any health organisation or library that would use it for reference material.

For more information or link to purchase this book please click here:forecast4fortune.com

CIGUATOXINS are amongst the deadliest mammalian poison known to us, volume for volume it is 1,000 times more potent than arsenic.

This frightening poison has been around for centuries – perfectly natural to our world for many centuries.

WE ARE NOT INFORMED and more importantly there is very little knowledge and even less help for anyone who gets ill from this toxin. I ate fresh fish with cigutera and my life has never been the same since.

WHY ARE WE NOT INFORMED? –

WHY DOESN’T ANYONE TALK ABOUT IT? –

WHY IS THERE NO AWARENESS ABOUT THIS POISON when just about everything else on the planet has a medicine for it. Possibly, this is a reason why. The medical field cant figure it out. However, I rarely find a medical person who has even heard of it so how can they diagnose people correctly.

MULTIPLE SCLEROSIS

is about the most common misdiagnoses – among other things that people are reported as having when doctors cant diagnose them….. dermatology problems, mental problems, imaginings!! ie. making it up. I have read of many many people who experience this before they are diagnosed, sometimes for years.

I have had CIGUATERA FISH POISONING for almost 13 years now and suffered enormous pain, burning skin and itching beyond belief causing a lot difficulty during those years. The Ciguatera Fish Poison is not a new poison but been around our planet from birth. It is caused by fish eating weed on DYING CORAL & ROCK which has the Ciguatera toxin contained within it. When the fish grows to 3kilos or a larger fish eats it, the ciguatera toxins are generated into the flesh of the fish and it becomes fatal to small mammals and some humans. There are many cases of deaths in recent years around the globe.

The ciguatera toxin contains 5 other toxins within it and is 1000 times more powerful than arsenic poisoning so it is very detrimental to ones health and well being if you happen to ingest it. OFTEN mis-diagnosed for MS, Skin problems, Mental problems and anything else they can think of because it is so little known about. I have known only one GP in many years who was a little familiar. Not one GP ever offered to help me look and learn!?

There is NO blood test for this however the ITCH & BURN is often the way this is diagnosed and redness, burning and intense itching of palms of hands, inner mouth, throat etc all at the onset especially. This subsides (sometimes) and changes into other symptoms; it moves about your body and attacks are recurrent depending on diet and activity. Some people can continue to work and have a fairly normal life, often reporting a re-attack when eating seafoods, chicken etc… others…. suffer horribly and it changes their life forever, permanently and its real!! One’s hot and cold feelings become opposite as the nervous system is affected. Nausea, wieght loss, loss of balance and thinking abilities, loss of muscular ability, amongst a myriad of other symptoms.

YOU DO NOT WANT TO GET CIGUATERA FISH POISONING so please educate yourself now

I hope this site will bring in stories from others who are suffering and some more information on how to cope with this insidious poison. I welcome and invite everyone to have their say, write their story and tell us your information on eating habits and mainting a lifestyle.

I have written a small book called LIVING WITH CIGUATERA FISH POISONING and welcome anyone to purchase it as an e-book from Xlibris, Amazon and other book stores. It is available as a soft cover for $20 plus postage and hard covers are available. I am happy to donate a book to any health organisation or library that would use it for reference material.

Please send in your experiences to me so we can make this the hub of healing ourselves and each other, while making others aware of this dangerous poison & how easily it gets ingested.

You may not know about it before you get it but believe me you will know VERY QUICKLY if you have ingested ciguateric fish. Get to hospital and get a MANNITOL shot. You will need a great deal of medicine to help your body cope and there is NO MEDICAL HELP. Natural medicines – naturopathic and homeopathic are the only medicines that have helped me gain wellness and many others suffering. Please get natural help as soon as you can.

For any further information or inquiries please contact me at cooeechris1@gmail.com or see the support group on Facebook.

CIGUATERA Fish Poison – What was the fish like?

HOW DO YOU TELL IF FISH HAS CIGUATERA FISH POISON IN IT?

There is a lot of information around now about Ciguatera.  Read my small book if you would like up to date information and personal experiences.  You can find the link to the book on this link.

There is no real test for ciguatera in fish. Many chefs have not even heard of it and would not know.  The toxin cannot be cooked, frozen, tested or anything.  Small things like:  flies will not land on fish with ciguatera – a silver coin or ring under scales will turn black – or the most common is to give a piece of the fish to a small mammal and if it dies – well, you know it is toxic. YES!  It is recorded that people do this in some places.

I got Ciguatera because the fisherman forgot to test the fish and then the resort owners forgot as well.  They were all well aware of it but thought each one of them had “tested” it. So it was cut up and set out for us to cook on a BBQ, along with a wonderful platter of crustaceans – which I can’t eat having an allergy to them. Consequently, I ate more fish than anyone.

The fish looked and seemed fresh – as it was – only 2 hours out of the ocean – yum.  We didn’t see the initial size of the fish but there were many large fillets for us and we cooked several at once.  The were cooked for more than the several minutes that it takes to cook fresh fish.  Instead of that, it seemed uncooked – almost still spongy or raw to feel – not to look at.  It looked cooked.  On eting we decided it must be still raw so back onto the BBQ for another cook.  It was so well cooked now, or so we thought it should be that it was decided “there was something strange about it” and we mostly discontinued to eat anymore.  As I mentioned, I kept eating some, but only from the very edges as this part seemed cooked.

So, the most UNUSUAL thing I could say about the fish was this strange texture, even though it was well cooked.

Japanese cooking uses a lot of fresh fish and also the internal organs.  The toxins go to this area of the fish more than the flesh so the toxin is much stronger if you eat pate and this sort of food that is made from fish organs.  I know people who got Ciguatera eating at a Sushi bar in Sydney, New South Wales.

In Melbourne in the late 1990’s at a Japanese Fish Banquet 90 people died and 300 were taken ill.  New York has a similar incident where 30 people died after a banquet.  You can find these facts if you look.

WHY ARE WE NOT INFORMED ABOUT SOMETHING THAT HAS BEEN ON OUR PLANET SINCE IT BEGAN

THIS IS NOTHING NEW!!   PLEASE TELL EVERYONE TO AVOID BEING VERY ILL.

Warning – Fijians know all about Ciguatera – read this

WARNING!! Please read below for the latest advice from Fijian islanders about Ciguatera Fish Poison!

NEW POST: I received this message 4/10/12 via a private facebook page. I am amazed that this person’s cat lived as it usually kills small mammals. I am amazed to hear that the people she met from Nevada (who had not eaten fish before?) had no reaction. Never heard or read about this either, so I will ask her for more information on that.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

More people who are suffering… please read: WARNING!!!

NEW POST INFORMATION IS FROM/THROUGH NATIVE ISLANDERS WHO KNOW AND HAVE KNOWN FOREVER, ABOUT SUCH THINGS. THIS LADY LIVES ON A SOUTH PACIFIC ISLAND WITH THE ISLANDERS AND LIVES LIKE THEM. I BELIEVE THEY WOULD KNOW THE MOST SO LETS TAKE NOTICE

Hi Chris, Ive experienced Ciguatera Fish Poisoning once. My daughter Coral and out cat Tinkles got it from the same fish. So did the cook and the waitress. Strangely enough a large Mangrove Jack carried the algae induced poisoned flesh. Another 12 people all from the Nevada Desert ate from the same fish the same night. The fish was brought in freshly speared that day. The funny thing about Ciguatera is that if a persons diet consists of plenty of fish from the sea there is no immunity to contracting the violent sickness. The people from Nevada didn’t flinch the next day they were healthy as could be without a trace of poisoning. Unlike us I actually felt it coming on barely four hours after eating a modest portion. Cat nearly died and for 10 days Coral and I kept her strength up by eye-dropping liquids down her throat. Summer time in Fiji its not a good plan to eat Red skinned fish over 40cm in length especially if they are caught inside the reef lagoons. This is where the algae blooms which these fish feed off which poisons there flesh for human consumption.

Sega na lega A very important fact is that Ciga carrier fish, are actually predators of algae eating fish while not being algae eaters themselves. Thereby the Ciga carrier fish become contaminated, poisoning human and or mammalia who consume their fishy flesh. The specific type of algae prevails prolifically during summer in the tropics mainly. This the a dangerous time to be eating Coral Trout, Red Bass, and a few others after they exceed a length of 30cm. They are bound to be poisonous. However I speak from knowledge gleaned from Fiji Island communities, experience, and from my own research.

About 3 weeks ago when in Fiji Noelene and I were in SavuSavu. We were yarning to a extremely well seasoned sailor on his mono about to sail north. He relayed a very disturbing story. When he sailed across the Atlantic he had a crew on board who had this Gigarecorder laser thingy and they ran it along the body of a 2okg Walu (sorry my Fijian entering again) Spanish Makeral and the Giga went ballistic recording 75% over the healthy normal limit of radiation in this poor pelagic body.

HOW CAN WE GET THIS MESSAGE OUT TO EVERYONE SO THEY KNOW?!?!?

I am hoping to raise awareness of this so everyone can have a choice of knowing that they can die or be very ill from eating fresh fish!! Yes!! fresh fish… no, its not man made, its a perfectly natural toxin that can be deadly to mammals – small or large.

Fish eat the weed or algae on dying rock or coral that is toxic. When they are either consumed by a larger fish or grow to 3 kilos they pass the ciguatera toxin up the food chain. Nothing new but it was new to me when I got so sick….

DO NOT TRUST FISH OILS!!

DO NOT TRUST EATING FISH

DO NOT TRUST CANNED TUNA

DO NOT KID YOURSELF THAT YOUR CANT GET IT

CIGUATOXINS are amongst the deadliest mammalian poison known to us, volume for volume it is 1,000 times more potent than arsenic.

This frightening poison has been around for centuries – perfectly natural to our world for many centuries.

WE ARE NOT INFORMED and more importantly there is very little knowledge and even less help for anyone who gets ill from this toxin. I ate fresh fish with cigutera and my life has never been the same since.

WHY ARE WE NOT INFORMED? –

WHY DOESN’T ANYONE TALK ABOUT IT? –

WHY IS THERE NO AWARENESS ABOUT THIS POISON when just about everything else on the planet has a medicine for it. Possibly, this is a reason why. The medical field cant figure it out. However, I rarely find a medical person who has even heard of it so how can they diagnose people correctly.

MULTIPLE SCLEROSIS

is about the most common misdiagnoses – among other things that people are reported as having when doctors cant diagnose them….. dermatology problems, mental problems, imaginings!! ie. making it up. I have read of many many people who experience this before they are diagnosed, sometimes for years.

I have had CIGUATERA FISH POISONING for almost 13 years now and suffered enormous pain, burning skin and itching beyond belief causing a lot difficulty during those years. The Ciguatera Fish Poison is not a new poison but been around our planet from birth. It is caused by fish eating weed on DYING CORAL & ROCK which has the Ciguatera toxin contained within it. When the fish grows to 3kilos or a larger fish eats it, the ciguatera toxins are generated into the flesh of the fish and it becomes fatal to small mammals and some humans. There are many cases of deaths in recent years around the globe.

The ciguatera toxin contains 5 other toxins within it and is 1000 times more powerful than arsenic poisoning so it is very detrimental to ones health and well being if you happen to ingest it. OFTEN mis-diagnosed for MS, Skin problems, Mental problems and anything else they can think of because it is so little known about. I have known only one GP in many years who was a little familiar. Not one GP ever offered to help me look and learn!?

There is NO blood test for this however the ITCH & BURN is often the way this is diagnosed and redness, burning and intense itching of palms of hands, inner mouth, throat etc all at the onset especially. This subsides (sometimes) and changes into other symptoms; it moves about your body and attacks are recurrent depending on diet and activity. Some people can continue to work and have a fairly normal life, often reporting a re-attack when eating sea-foods, chicken etc… others…. suffer horribly and it changes their life forever, permanently and its real!! One’s hot and cold feelings become opposite as the nervous system is affected. Nausea, weight loss, loss of balance and thinking abilities, loss of muscular ability, amongst a myriad of other symptoms.

YOU DO NOT WANT TO GET CIGUATERA FISH POISONING so please educate yourself now

I hope this site will bring in stories from others who are suffering and some more information on how to cope with this insidious poison. I welcome and invite everyone to have their say, write their story and tell us your information on eating habits and maintaiing a lifestyle.

I have written a small book called LIVING WITH CIGUATERA FISH POISONING and welcome anyone to purchase it as an e-book from Xlibris, Amazon and other book stores. It is available as a soft cover for $20 plus postage and hard covers are available. I am happy to donate a book to any health organization or library that would use it for reference material.

Please send in your experiences to me so we can make this the hub of healing ourselves and each other, while making others aware of this dangerous poison & how easily it gets ingested.

You may not know about it before you get it but believe me you will know VERY QUICKLY if you have ingested ciguateric fish. Get to hospital and get a MANNITOL shot. You will need a great deal of medicine to help your body cope and there is NO MEDICAL HELP. Natural medicines – naturopathic and homeopathic are the only medicines that have helped me gain wellness and many others suffering. Please get natural help as soon as you can.

For any further information or enquiries please contact me at or go to this link to see more.

THANK YOU

I was talking to a fellow recently who has had ‘cig’ for years and said he was only sick initially but when he thought about it…. he did have reactions when he ate spanner crab. I have never heard about that either. I have come to believe from research that crustaceans are safe as they do not consume fish or the algae/weed that has the toxin.

SO how can we know if such different reactions are from person to person. I would never take the risk of eating any more seafood especially fish but people do and they do have further reactions. Obviously, it isnt severe enough to stop them eating fish! Amazing…. There is so much to wonder at, learn about and research.Anyone out there know some rich scientist who wants to look at this???I am continually blown away just how many people are suffering it but often don’t know, don’t talk about it or don’t live to find out! Really!

I talked to a lady recently who said her aunt died 20 minutes after eating fish out and they never found out what she died of….. WHAT!!!

how can doctors not find out for them or know something??!?!?

Anyone out there got your own experience with this horrid poisoning.  ATM I cannot do much at all and the poison is quiet! Still it is a whole lot better than being in constant pain each day like it was during “flashes” or attacks.  Anyone who is coping with it got any wonderful ways for healing?  France has come up with a possible “cure” as they have worked out the DNA of the ciguatoxin and it sounds exciting.  Let’s all hope something soon comes out to help many all over the globe..

Long Illness – CIGUATERA FISH POISON

Hi all,

Here is a recent email I received from another sufferer who had long term problems but didn’t know what it was.  With permission I am posting her words.  I hope it can help others who may have similar problems and have had no diagnosis yet. Most doctors do not even know about it, let alone believe you.  There is also a support page on Facebook of others with similar stories and experiences that are worth knowing about.

Hi, I just read your book and would like to thank you for sharing your story – I imagine it wasn’t easy to relay. I can’t think of anything to write that doesn’t sound too cliched but hope you are doing better.

I found it very interesting as I have a relapsing neurological condition that defies diagnosis along with migraines, skin complaints, breathing difficulties and IBS. I’ve had countless MRIs and blood tests etc to no avail.

What interests me about the fish poison is I grew up in WA, where I had a mystery illness as a kid – we kept fish, went fishing and ate fish.

Then we moved to the UK and i started having weak knees where my legs would give out suddenly and then return in a hour or a day or so. This got worse after a trip to Africa where I was violently ill after a fish dinner followed by a yearly relapsing paralysis/muscle weakness with extreme fatigue etc. which would last several weeks but take months to recover from. It gets a little worse each time.

The doctors can’t figure out what is triggering it but an allergy to peanuts, eggs and chicken tie in with a diet change to coincide with summer when it normally happens. Also, prawns became a no go a couple of years ago followed recently by cod now. Since there are so many symptoms, I’ve never told the doctors about this or the swap on the fluctuating hot cold sensation or burning toothpaste (some brands are worse than others) as seemed trivial compared to the other more pressing problems but I’ll have to raise it next time.

Even more interesting, my husband who incidentally never eats fish, has also started displaying similar symptoms, mainly gastro but also back weakness.

I know it’s a stretch but then again, I think it’s worth pursuing given the lack of a viable alternative. Once again I would like to thank you for sharing your story and this new avenue for me to pursue.

Kind regards

List of symptoms – CIGUATERA FISH POISON

Ciguatoxins are amongst the DEADLIEST MAMMALIAN poison known  to us.  Volume for volume it is 1000,times more potent than arsenic and the ciguatoxins are in fresh fish over 3kg or 30 cms.  Of course, not every fish has the toxins but it is now being carried by fish globally and has increased 60% in the last 10 years according to marine biologists.

This frightening poison has been around for centuries and we are not informed about it.  I ate fish with ciguatera and have long term disability – long term pain – long term complications. Most people suffering ciguatera have to give up work and exercise. Not to mention all the other eating problems, breathing problems, walking problems and more…. here is a list of the symptoms. You can suffer any of these symptoms or all of them.

NEUROLOGICAL

Parenthesis of extremities and around mouth, including numbness, tingling or pain

Temperature reversals – hot is cold and cold is hot

Temperature sensitivity

Vertigo

Dental pain

Blurred vision

Tremors

Psychiatric problems

Pain when urinating

Muscle aches, intense pain

skin peeling

Itching/burning of skin,Itchy eyes, nose, ears. Itchy scalp, face or anywhere

Discomfort or inability in walking, standing, exercise

Exhaustion

Adrenal exhaustion

Thyroid exhaustion

Sleeping disorders

Mental disorientation.

GASTRO-INTESTINAL

Nausea and vomiting, cramps

Diarrhoea

Dyspepsia

Digestive difficulties

Pain on eating

Intense and unquenchable thirst

CARDIO-VASCULAR

Bradycardia

Tachycardia

Hypotension

Arrhythmia

Sudden blood pressure spikes – high or low

RESPIRATORY

All asthma like symptoms

Shortness of breath when active

Shallow breath

Sufferers will tell you lots more symptoms which can occur in individuals also.

Please have great caution when eating fish.  Japanese food has a lot of raw fish and is a common means of getting Ciguatera. You do not have to eat much to get sick.  It will not matter how fresh it is.  It cannot be cooked away.  No one can tell if ciguatera is in that fish you are eating or not… do not believe anyone who says they know it is okay. Unless they can tell you the origin, size and weight, do not eat it.  The only real test is to feed a piece of the fish to a dog or cat. If it has the cuguatoxin, the cat or dog will die very shortly!  This is real!  Flies will not land on fish with ciguatera – other than this there is absolutely  no way to tell if it is safe or not.  Canned tuna is another common carrier of ciguatera – read the facts now… more to come or read my book Living with Ciguatera Poisoning.