Tropical Vacation, Tropical Fish, Tropical Illness - A Food-borne Illness to Be Weary Of

Vacationing to the Caribbean and other tropical locations can be a great adventure; seeing, smelling, tasting, and doing things you've never done before. However, when partaking in all the delicacies the tropics have to offer there is a troublesome foodborne illness you should be aware of. Ciguatera is a poisoning that comes from some tropical fishes (Castro & Huber, 2007, p. 320). It is caused by toxic dinoflagellates or algae, which are commonly consumed by herbivorous fishes and then consumed by predatory fishes (Castro & Huber, 2007, p.320).

The toxic dinoflagellates that cause ciguatera are hard to track because the algae continually appears and dies out at irregular intervals (Castro & Huber, 2007, p. 320). Humans mainly get ciguatera from consuming these tropical predatory fishes, however, consuming some tropical herbivorous fishes and also mollusks can cause the illness as well (Castro & Huber, 2007, p. 320). Somewhere between hundreds or thousands of people get ciguatera a year by consuming these toxic fish (Castro & Huber, 2007, p. 320). The majority of the symptoms of ciguatera resemble a typical food borne illness. The CDC note nausea and vomiting as common symptoms of the toxic fish poisoning (para. 1). However, there are more troubling symptoms to follow.

An infected person may also experience an unusual tingling in the fingers and toes and their sense of hot and cold are reversed, i.e. cold things feeling hot and hot things feeling cold (Castro & Huber, 2007, p. 320). The CDC notes that the sickness can last days, weeks, months, or even years (para. 1). As of now there is no cure for ciguatera, there are only treatments for the symptoms (CDC, 2007, para. 1). Castro and Huber (2007) explain that an intravenous injection of a specific sugar can be helpful to reduce the feelings of sickness (p. 320); though the normal remedies or rest and hydration may work just as well. When dining on fresh tropic fish it is difficult to tell if the fish is toxic, in fact there are only a limited number of ways to ensure your health (Castro & Huber, 2007, p. 320). The varied numbers and kinds of dinoflagellates that cause ciguatera in humans make testing the fish very difficult, thus the only absolutely safe way to stay healthy is to refrain from consuming tropical fish in the first place (Castro & Huber, 2007, p. 320). If the temptation of delicious tropical fish is too great, and you should choose to partake in the tropical treasure try to eat at reputable restaurants, these places may have higher standards for the fish they serve, thus reducing your chance of getting ciguatera.

References:
Castro, P. & Huber, M.E. (2007). Marine biology (6th ed.). New York: McGraw-Hill Higher Education.

CDC. (2007). Harmful Algae Blooms (HABs). Retrieved Oct. 29, 2007, from http://www.cdc.gov/nceh/ciguatera/