Shashliks: a terrible sin for health? If you remember some rules, you will be able to eat without regrets.

Avoid toast and spicy meat.

As the dietitian, nutritionist Vaida Kurpienė said, whether shashliks are good for our overall health depends a lot on how they are made.

Shashlik is fried meat. In general, when it comes to meat, there are opinions that it is harmful to health. But in reality, it only hurts when improperly prepared or eaten in very large quantities. Like any other product, if we eat it in large quantities, “said the dietitian.

Roasts should really be avoided, although, as V. Kurpienė says, most people like them very much. However, toast is a carcinogenic, carcinogenic substance, so it shouldn’t be on the plate at all.

“Perhaps it is possible to choose a cooking method that is as small as possible. Because when it is baked incorrectly, the center is green and around it is black. If this has already happened, the burns should be cut, – advised V. Kurpienė.

– Still very bad, when the meat is fried: it dries and shines, the person chews it badly. And then the digestive tract can be disrupted. This is very important, because generally nobody eats barbecues in the morning, they do it in the afternoon and quite late. “

Why eat fried meat badly at night? The dietitian explains: if we eat hard-to-digest foods at night, the stomach can gnaw acids the next day, tormented by lack of sleep. When you lie down on a full stomach, your body cannot sink into deep sleep.

Pay attention to the serving and the marinade

Two other aspects are also important: what is eaten and drunk with barbecues and what meat is chosen and how much is placed on the plate.

If shashliks are made from the neck, which is the most common option for such a dish, it should be remembered that it is a fairly fatty meat, so it should be eaten less than lean. Special attention should be paid to those who have weight problems, as well as if they eat shashlik at night, they have indigestion.

“The thinner the meat, the more protein it contains, but on the other hand, chicken breast for shashliks is probably rarely used by anyone. However, the turkey thighs fit perfectly and are very tasty, – advised V. Kurpienė.

– The amount of lean and fatty meat on a plate can vary up to 3 times according to the rules. And most people don’t see what kind of meat is put on a plate and they load the same serving regardless of the fat content of the meat. “

The nutritional value of barbecues also depends, of course, on marinades. Sometimes even completely unsatisfactory sauces can hide a lot of bad things. For example, barbecue sauce, according to the dietitian, can be 30 to 40 percent. sugar. So if all the marinade in this sauce is consumed for the meat marinade, you get a considerable amount of sugar along with the meat.

Mayonnaise, which is often used for marinades, really smooths meat very well, but it’s extra fat. Therefore, the most important question is how much we put on it. If we soak up the lean meat that it just floats in mayonnaise, it would be better to buy a slightly fatter meat and marinate it with herbs, tomatoes, kiwis, onions, ingredients that would be natural but would also soften the meat, “said the dietitian.

Therefore, one of the most important rules, according to a nutritionist, is to control yourself, how much meat we eat and how many fatty or sugary additives we add to the marinade.

In short, you should choose shashliks that are easy to chew, avoid toast, and buy or pickle in the most natural way possible. And of course, by no means overeat. Even if you choose the best option, but you eat so much that you have a hard time drinking and still drink beer, it won’t do you any good and upset your entire digestive tract. So in any case, you should keep your stirrups and chew well, ”said V. Kurpienė.

The nutritionist gives another tip: if we eat fatty shashliks, we should eat something sour at the same time, onions or their leaves, pickles, tomatoes and many nearby vegetables, these additives will help digest fatty meat.

“There is no standard on how many times a week you can eat shashliks.” This needs to be analyzed in general terms: how much white and red meat do you consume per week. Even if we eat shashliks twice a month, but they will be completely roasted, fried, marinated in a marinade with a lot of sugar, and at the same time we will drink alcohol, in that case it may hurt once, ”said V. Kurpienė.

Not only chicken but also beef is dangerous

One of the dangers we face is not frying the meat completely. It turns out that even when preparing red meat, the same care should be taken.

“Not in fully fried meat, but especially in poultry, increases the risk of salmonellosis. Few people think that beef is safe to eat and is not completely fried. However, beef may also be at risk of becoming infected with parasites, ”said Gerda Piepolytė, Chief Specialist, Division of Infectious Disease Management, Vilnius Department of the National Center for Public Health (NVSC).

According to G. Piepolytė, salmonella diseases are detected every year, and especially in summer they increase.

“Food prepared at room temperature can only last a couple of hours. Heat can resist even less, because heat stimulates the growth of all bacteria, not only salmonella, but can also increase total bacterial contamination, “said the specialist.

Therefore, it is very important to keep the meat cold. And if there is a longer way waiting from the store to the house, it is recommended to buy some kind of cooler bag that helps not to heat up the meat.

“In my opinion, meat can be stored in the heat for half an hour, but this is not always the case. It depends on the heat. If the meat is in the open sun and unpacked, I think, and even shorter. But even at home , the products cannot be stored in the refrigerator for longer than their expiration date, “said the interlocutor.

Proper hand hygiene is very important to protect against salmonellosis. It is also necessary to fry the meat completely and, if necessary, cut the piece and check that it is not pink inside.

“Cross contamination should be avoided. For example, if in nature a chicken is cut with a knife, it is by no means possible to cut vegetables for a salad with the same knife and at the same table. If there is no other table, it is It is necessary to wash it very well, without forgetting the tools ”, G. Piepolytė warned.

The specialist listed the main symptoms of salmonellosis: fever, diarrhea, vomiting, abdominal pain.

“It depends a lot on the response of the human immune system. Some people get sick more easily and practically do not feel any symptoms, for others they are stronger, “said G. Piepolytė.

In the summer, the incidence of salmonellosis increases

According to the Center for Communicable Diseases and AIDS (ULAC), the number of cases of bacterial intestinal infectious diseases increases each year during the warm season, since bacteria like heat. According to the ULAC page, more than 50 percent are registered each year during the summer months. All these infections.

The most frequently reported foodborne infections in Lithuania are campylobacteriosis, salmonellosis, yersiniosis, escherichiosis. The pathogens of these diseases are transmitted through foods of animal origin: chicken meat, eggs, raw cow’s milk and other foods.

Foodborne intestinal infections affect people of all ages, but the highest incidence occurs in children younger than 5 years. Young children, the elderly, people with immunosuppression, decreased gastric acidity are more susceptible to intestinal infectious agents and therefore may have more pronounced clinical signs.

In the summer, there is also an increase in the number of cases when a group of people is poisoned by the same unsafe food. The most common cause of such outbreaks are barbecued chicken fillets and pre-prepared food for a wedding or other celebration at home, in cafes and restaurants, improperly heat-treated or otherwise handled.

What is salmonellosis?

Salmonellosis is one of the most common zoonoses caused by a bacteria called salmonella. These bacteria cause inflammation of the small intestine, leading to diarrhea, fever, abdominal pain, and headaches. These symptoms of the disease usually appear 12 to 72 hours after infection. The disease generally lasts 4 to 7 days, and many recover without specific treatment. In some patients, bacteria can enter the bloodstream and other organs from the intestine. In this case, the disease can be fatal if left untreated.

Salmonella is sufficiently resistant to dehydration, cold, but sensitive to high temperatures. They remain viable in frozen meat for a long time and can reproduce again in thawed foods. The most favorable temperature for salmonella to reproduce in food is between 20 and 40 degrees. A person with salmonellosis can also be a source of infection.

In recent years, in Lithuania, as in other European and global countries, salmonellosis has spread mainly through eggs, chicken and chicken products. Those who handle it can contaminate food, use the bathroom and not wash their hands. Salmonella can enter food from kitchen utensils or environmental surfaces that have previously been treated with raw meat and chicken, as well as salmonella-contaminated hands.