Ciguatera Poisoning & Chronic Fatigue Syndrome

The effects of the neurotoxins that can contaminate fish like red snapper and grouper can last for decades.

Image Credit: NEON ja and Richard Bartz via Wikimedia Commons.

[robertdesnoes]

I used to be a sailer and caught a barracuda in the Bahamas on the ship.. I am from Jamaica and I know to eat the smaller ones and cut a piece of the fish and test it by putting in an ants nest see it they eat it or so they say.. best way is to offer a piece of the fish to someone but tell them it's a barracuda.. so they knowing what it is wait until the next day after they eat it and call them.. u will know for sure..anyway I gave the cook on the ship he said he would eat it first. Next day he looked fine. It was Sunday so we cut it into stakes and grilled it. That night lucky we were in miami I went to sleep then I remembered the captain waking me up and coming asking me how I feel because the paramedics were here because the rest of the crew looked like they were dying. I felt the worst deiarrea ever... then any muscle I used felt like the bone was broken.. water felt like electricity on my tongue.. i was really weak this lasted for around 3weeks.. one of top ten worst things happen to me.

[jasonskywalker]

You are supposed to feed it to cats and/or ants if the animal don't touch the food, is contaminated. I'm from a tropical island in the Caribbean, barracuda is the main culprit, saw people die of Ciguatera poisoning, scary stuff

[mattable]

I now have this. The last 24 hours have been the worst of my life. My joints are still killing me, and I am still lightheaded. Luckily my stomach is back to normal.

[marichristian]

I contracted ciguatera while living and working on Grand Bahama Island 40 years ago, and eating freshly caught red snapper. I was very sick indeed vomiting, excruciating muscle cramps, hot/ cold dysfunction. Mannitol treatment was not yet an option. I know most people recover completely after a few months, but I still suffer from intermittent cramping in my toes. My toes literally cross- over and bunch up- usually at night. The pain is excruciating. I suppose I had some peripheral nerve damage which never healed. My doctor prescribes 1mg of Lorazepam taken before bed which allows me to sleep through the night without cramps. I truly believe that ciguatera can have long-term consequences which must be dealt with to restore quality of life.

[harmonyrose]

My friend who lived in Indonesia for several years succumbed to ciguatera poisoning.  What complicated things was that she'd also just come back from Australia having had her breast and lymph nodes removed for cancer.  The ciguatera poisoning settled in her arm wound and she spent 6 weeks in hospital, part of it in an induced coma, trying not to lose her life nor her arm.  Thankfully she pulled through this horrible encounter (...sadly 10 years later she is about to lose her life to cancer after all, and no, it did not stop her from eating seafood or meat).

[healthandspirit]

Wow, didn't expect such a high prevalence.

[lovelygirl]

Just curious:  how can they test for it and do they have a cure?

[jennyjohnson]

Thank you again for addressing ME/CFS, in good faith, since most won't.

[juancaraballo]

There are a bunch of videos about ciguatera poisoning none of them say what is the treatment.Can somebody help on that please.

[dayligarciapolledo]

Hi, I got Ciguatera less than 2 months ago in Cuba my home. I feel much better now but still not perfect. Particulary today I been feeling bad that is why I looked for information here in youtube. I wonder if cafeine is bad to take having Ciguatera? can someone help me because I dont see it the answer any where. Thanks so much

[sidilicious]

Yikes, I hope my cats are OK. We often fed them cat food with fish in it.

[NutritionFactsOrg]

Did you hear why we might want to avoid fish like red snapper and grouper to avoid a sexually transmitted neurotoxin?

[catherinek]

I normally look to your videos as a source of honest, scaremongering-free information. However, the title of this video is misleading. I do not doubt that the poisoning you discuss can cause CFS-like symptoms but I feel it is important to point out that it is not a cause of true Chronic Fatigue Syndrome. CFS is a result of amygdala hypersensitivity, something that Ashok Gupta has clearly demonstrated and his findings are becoming increasingly recognised by those researching this condition.

[JosephNJ]

So now cats will become the canary in the mine?

[anthonyman]

hot and cold reversed...could that be handy to eat when it's real super could or hot out?

[stub]

Sounds like the scientist in the Simpsons.

[PP_]

Because...Cats are the freaking best, Michael!

[WellingtonBikeCam]

Inhumane to feed it to a cat? How about inhumane for the fish?

[SandyzSerious]

I don't think I'll eat anymore bought fish.

[dabigisland]

? Okinawan's eat seaweed and kelp and live long lives so maybe the ciguatera dies when the seaweed is dried - guess I will eat it after thinking about it more - yes I know half their diet is sweet potatoes