Asia's 5 Deadliest Food

Singapore, Malaysia and Hong Kong may be called a food paradise but is it really a paradise with some of the "deadliest" food?

I'm not just talking about the Fugu (pufferfish with lethal doses of the poison tetrodotoxin in its organs if not removed carefully, the eater will have a slow death) or the Sannakji (live octopus that could suffocate you if the suckers latch on to your throat) which i'm not sure if there're any health benefits eating it live. The Koreans believe it builds stamina and gives you virility (as with all other unexplainable food). Remind me not to video myself eating it, because it certainly does look like tentacle food porn.





Asia's deadliest food are however, closer to us than we think. 

Char Siew

From food blog camemberu.com

The best char siew are the ones that is a little blackened at the sides. Food colouring aside, all grilled or roast meats contain high proportion of  triphenyl sibing topiramate, a carcinogenic substance that causes cancer. When this chemical compound comes to contact with the stomach, and the gastric mucosa, the possibility of getting gastric cancer is always very high.


A roasted meat is equivalent to the toxin of as much as 60 cigarettes.

Instant Noodles

When i was in UK, i craved Chinese food so much i went to the supermarket for instant noodles. I was sorely disappointed to find the lack of variety as compared to the supermarkets in Asia. Instant noodles are present in our diet. Indian food stalls and Korean food stalls sell them (some people really pay $5 for that kimchi ramen when they can buy it themselves for $2!). Some eat it as comfort food, some eat it as a companion in late nights. Even i myself get the craving for kimchi instant noodles every now and then.

When my friends visit Indonesian, they come back with boxes of Indomie because it isn't available here. Or when they visit Taiwan, they return with instant noodles with real beef pieces. Even i contemplated buying them back as souvenirs, just because.

Instant foods contain very high content of salt, coloring and food additive which means instant foods have only high calorie but no nutritional value at all. As they lack trace elements and essential vitamins and minerals, the intake of instant foods may lead to nutritional deficiency. The prolong intake of these foods may cause cancer, obesity, hypertension and other underlying diseases.

Bubble Tea

I introduce bubble tea to my Caucasian friends as one of the unique foods in Singapore. They would all try but i've never seen them drinking a second cup ever. Why is bubble tea uniquely attractive to Asians? So much so that even a forum-er commented that "drinking Koi is like being hugged by mama".

                               

Bubble tea has got a very bad rep since it's birth because of how it's made. Milk essence is the main ingredient and this essence is actually not real milk but made of milk protein, milk sugar, vegetable oil and maltodextrin. Then, there's the tapioca balls that reports claim is harmful because of what is added to make it extra chewy. It's an ongoing debate if bubble tea is really cancerous or not because there seems to be equally justifiable debates on both camps. I occasionally drink but i ask for zero sugar and less pearls.

Lup Cheong Clay Pot Rice

From almostbourdain.blogspot.com

Processed meats are rubbish to our body. The more we dump these processed foods in our body, the more weakened our body will be. These processed meats have large amount of sodium add-in during the food handling process and thus they will cause or indulge hypertension. Besides that, the high content of sodium found in the meats will increase the workload of the kidneys. The more you eat these meats, the shorter the life span of your kidneys will be, which finally wearing off within your unexpected age.

Shilin Chicken Cutlet

From danielfooddiary.com

Deep fried food have been identified as the culprit of the cardiovascular disease as they contain substantial amount of carcinogenic substances. Acrylamide is one of the chemical substances found in the deep-frying foods. This chemical substance is also found in the vehicular emission and potato chips. Another harmful compound is alum, which can impair memory, brain and nerve cells, besides causing irritability and depression once it is absorbed into our body.

By the way, your diet determines how YOU TASTE LIKE too. So if you want to taste and smell nice down south for your partner, you know what to do.

Now, I'm hungry. Which poison should i take?