I’m sure we can all agree that at the end of a long workday there’s nothing better than enjoying a nice glass of pig’s blood. I don’t mean that bottled crap you buy in the supermarket, chocked full of additives and high fructose corn syrup. I’m talking about the real-deal piping hot blood straight from a live pig.

However, before you go ahead and take a nice drink, take heed. As one young man from Guangxi, China learned, drinking too much live pig’s blood (i.e. any) can actually be bad for your health.

According to the Guiyang Evening News, on 18 February a young man checked into an area hospital complaining of a variety of symptoms including weakness, dizziness, and loss of vision.

Medical staff performed a CT scan on the man’s brain and found the presence of 19 parasites in it. The culprits are known as Taenia solium, a type of pork tapeworm that can infect humans who ingest improperly cooked pork.

This tapeworm can be found in the blood and flesh of pigs. If consumed by humans its larva can enter the bloodstream and make its way to the brain. The good news is that this condition called neurocysticercosis is easily treatable by medication if detected in the early stages.

However, if left untreated it can result in severe brain and nerve damage leading to complications such as epilepsy and blindness. It can even be fatal in extreme cases. Unfortunately, this young man’s case is slightly advanced and it isn’t clear if he will pull through completely in the end.

The cause of this infection was the man’s fondness of drinking blood from a live pig made into a sweet soup reportedly called tian tang xue. However, the doctor who treated him took the opportunity to remind people to simply “never eat uncooked pork” and “do not drink the blood of a live pig.”

The thought of having worms in my brain is making the conversion to Islam a more and more appealing thought. However, if you’re one of those hardcore pork lovers who can’t go without the meat’s sweet and salty taste please remember to cook it thoroughly. And next time you find yourself sneaking up on a pig with a spigot, consider having something healthier like Coca-Cola or feces wine.

Source: Record China via Hachima Kiko (Japanese)
Top Image: Zazhi1
Taenia solium Image: Wikipedia – Roberto J. Galindo