this post was submitted on 25 Dec 2024
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[–] _cnt0@sh.itjust.works 130 points 1 month ago (6 children)

Prion diseases. Accumulation of different substances, like mercury, lead, strontium-90, and, a new contender to the list: micro plastics. And you'll want to have a look at a person's medication and likely want to make sure they've been off of it for a few days before consuming their flesh.

[–] TragicNotCute@lemmy.world 75 points 1 month ago (1 children)

Prion diseases are scary shit and not to be fucked with.

[–] watson387@sopuli.xyz 20 points 1 month ago

Yeah. Terrifying. Prion diseases are one of those things that I wish I had never learned about.

[–] amzd@lemmy.world 54 points 1 month ago (2 children)

Farm animals are legally allowed to eat actual plastic, not only microplastics. If you’re afraid of microplastics or accumulation of substances maybe don’t eat meat.

Legal limit of plastic in animal feed is 0.15% in the EU

A cow eats 25kg of dry food a day

25/100*0.15 = 0.0375kg = 37.5grams

A plastic bag weighs 6-8grams.

You are legally allowed to feed your cow 5 plastic bags a day (as a snack)

[–] FireRetardant@lemmy.world 21 points 1 month ago (1 children)

Bioaccumulation concentrates more pollutants the higher up the food chain you go. It is part of why most meat we eat comes from vegetarian animals. The fish we eat are often predatory so common advice is the keep the smaller and younger ones that are still big enough to be worth filleting. You don't actually want to eat a trophy sized fish because they've accumulated more pollutants. Trophy sized fish are better off being realsed, they are often good breeders and help keep healthy population numbers.

[–] F04118F@feddit.nl 11 points 1 month ago (1 children)

Of course, something that eats cows that eat a shitton of plastic, will have even more plastic in it.

But that doesn't mean that it's healthy to eat an animal that has been fed (assuming they are slaughtered at 3 years, and ignoring the climate impact, the ethics of slaughtering an animal in its youth, etc)..

41 kg of plastic

[–] amzd@lemmy.world 4 points 1 month ago (1 children)

I think if you don’t count the culling of baby calves the average age is ~6years so like 82kg of plastic.

[–] F04118F@feddit.nl 3 points 1 month ago (1 children)

Thanks for your feedback, I was guesstimating off the top of my head. On doing some research, I see meat cows are usually slaughtered at 18 months - 2 years old in the Netherlands.

5-6 years is the number I see for dairy cows.

[–] amzd@lemmy.world 2 points 1 month ago

Ah that’s the one I must’ve been thinking of, thanks.

[–] tacosplease@lemmy.world 7 points 1 month ago

The cow can have a little bit of plastic. As a treat :)

[–] Diplomjodler3@lemmy.world 22 points 1 month ago

OK, mate, I have good news and bad news. The good news: we're having a feast and you're the guest of honour. The bad news: you need to stop taking your meds for a few days.

[–] weeeeum@lemmy.world 14 points 1 month ago (1 children)

Honestly all that toxic shit is in our food already. There's a reason it accumulated in the "victim" too.

[–] _cnt0@sh.itjust.works 42 points 1 month ago (1 children)

The problem is bioaccumulation: taking in substances faster than you can metabolize and excrete them. Eating something that has already accumulated something is worse than accumulating it from the same original sources. That's why you can do suicide by vitamin A poisoning by eating carnivore livers.

[–] TheTechnician27@lemmy.world 6 points 1 month ago* (last edited 1 month ago)

It's also the case that when you're eating plant-based foods, unlike meat and dairy products, you're eating alpha- and beta-carotene and beta-cryptoxanthin, which your body can convert to Vitamin A and which don't cause hypervitaminosis.

So if you're just learning "Oh, shit, Vitamin A can poison me", don't let that hold you back from squash, yams, carrots etc.

[–] 0laura@lemmy.dbzer0.com 13 points 1 month ago (4 children)

aren't prion diseases usually just a thing for the brain? though I haven't considered the medication aspect... I want to eat a human heart some day, any other things I'd need to consider? I guess I'll just take the risk with the medications.

[–] Gladaed@feddit.org 19 points 1 month ago (1 children)

Misfolded proteins can occur everywhere it's just more fatal if it happens in the brain.

[–] Walk_blesseD@lemmy.blahaj.zone 15 points 1 month ago

While this is true, the main prion diseases that occur in humans do come specifically from neural matter.

[–] riwo@lemmy.blahaj.zone 13 points 1 month ago (2 children)

the free meds are just a bonus ;3

[–] 0laura@lemmy.dbzer0.com 13 points 1 month ago (3 children)

the funny thing is I'm being entirely serious. I need a heart transplant and if I survive I want to turn my old heart into burgers and share them with my girlfriend and boyfriend.

[–] Lumidaub@feddit.org 8 points 1 month ago (2 children)

Is there enough substance to turn it into burgers, plural? An average human heart is, what, fist-sized I think? Seems to me like you'd get one, maybe one and a half patties out of that, no? And you probably can't even use all of it, I'd assume.

[–] superb@lemmy.blahaj.zone 10 points 1 month ago* (last edited 1 month ago)

A pure heart burger probably wouldn’t be good anyways. You could mix it with another meat

[–] 0laura@lemmy.dbzer0.com 3 points 1 month ago

I have dilated cardiomyopathy so my heart is humongous. and yea I plan to mix it with other meat

[–] Irelephant@lemm.ee 3 points 1 month ago

This is the future the left wants!!!

spoiler/s

[–] OrnateLuna@lemmy.blahaj.zone 1 points 1 month ago (1 children)

Would you be able to get your old heart tho? I don't imagine hospitals give back organs to people

[–] 0laura@lemmy.dbzer0.com 4 points 1 month ago (2 children)

the doctor said I can get it back. though it'd be in formaldehyde and after they did sciencey stuff on it, not sure if its still edible at that point. if eating it isn't an option I'll make pendants out of it. cut a part off and put it in a little glass vial.

[–] OrnateLuna@lemmy.blahaj.zone 1 points 1 month ago

Well I hope everything works out for you and you get to achieve that goal

[–] Swedneck@discuss.tchncs.de 1 points 1 month ago (1 children)

not the obvious thing of keeping the jarred heart on a shelf, with ominous lighting?

[–] 0laura@lemmy.dbzer0.com 1 points 1 month ago

I've considered it, but that's what everyone would do. too boring. if I did do it I would add a speaker and vibration motor in the base so I can make it sound like it's still beating

[–] Iheartcheese@lemmy.world 8 points 1 month ago (1 children)

Did we just solve healthcare?

[–] _cnt0@sh.itjust.works 7 points 1 month ago

That's why I eat lots of chicken from the worst methods of rearing when having an infection: cheap antibiotics.

[–] _cnt0@sh.itjust.works 9 points 1 month ago

aren't prion diseases usually just a thing for the brain?

Don't you want to eat the crispy thinking bacon? Your loss. Next thing you're telling me you don't want to eat the testicles ...

[–] JayDee@lemmy.world 2 points 1 month ago

The steps are:

  • You ingest a prion.
  • This prion causes proteins to misfold in your digestive system, causing more prions
  • the spread of prions eventually reaches your brain, leading to a relatively fast mental decline.
[–] assassinatedbyCIA@lemmy.world 5 points 1 month ago (1 children)
[–] Irelephant@lemm.ee 5 points 1 month ago (1 children)

I don't think that can be contracted unless you eat someone with it

[–] watson387@sopuli.xyz 3 points 1 month ago (1 children)

It's a prion disease. I'm pretty sure it comes from eating the brain of someone who had it.

[–] Irelephant@lemm.ee 5 points 1 month ago

Yes, since its been eradicated, you cannot get it unless you eat a really old brain. You may get a differnt disease.