The 'Paralysis Is the Better Outcome' Food
Fugu Blowfish: Anytime your meal options include choosing paralysis vs. death, might we suggest a simple PB&J instead? Fugu contains a potent poison, tetrodotoxin (emphasis on 'toxin'), that can cause either of those two scenarios when the fish is improperly prepared. That's why only licensed chefs are allowed to cook the stuff -- it requires a precise, involved apprenticeship program. If you survive dinner, perhaps an arsenic sundae and a turpentine cocktail would be the perfect nightcap.
Putting the "Die" in "Diet"
Tainted Cantaloupe: Lindsay Lohan swears by them as a means for staying svelte, but based on how things are going for her lately, not to mention the recent listeria-tainted crop that has been blamed for close to 20 deaths, do you really want to mess with a fruit salad these days? We didn't think so. Cottage cheese alone is fine, thanks.
The Zombie Cheese
Casu Marzu: There is experimental and there is downright gross. This cheese, stuffed with live maggots (reports compare it to a mild Gorgonzola), ranks among the latter. Not to mention, live maggots can, well, live in your system, thereby making diarrhea and vomiting part of your near future. And while neither of those symptoms are necessarily killers, they may just make you wish they were.
The Dead Giveaway
Mushrooms with Badass Names: If you spot a food item with the word "death" in it, need we point out it may not be your wisest choice? If you want to make it to your twilight years, you should probably avoid poisonous mushrooms like the "destroying angel" or the "deadly webcap." Though they may look like regular mushrooms to the novice forager, these puppies have the potential to hold more than seven different toxins. Do you really want to risk it all on some fungus?
A Dish That Will Wring Your Neck
Sannakji (Wriggling Octopus): Sure, choking is a potential threat anytime you eat, but you're not exactly helping your odds by ingesting these still squirming, suction-cupped tentacles that can adhere to your cheeks or, even worse, the inside of your throat. So it's probably not a good idea to show off during your Match.com date by ordering this -- talk about putting a foot in your mouth! Awwkward.
This Frog Will Make You Croak
Giant Bullfrog, Namibia: No matter how delicious something may taste, when it contains "a few particularly toxic organs," best to stay away. One website describes the giant bullfrog as a "minefield of toxins with the skin and organs being particularly dangerous to eat." The risk of
oshiketakata, temporary kidney failure (is temporary kidney failure really much better than non-temporary kidney failure?), or even death seems like a high price to pay for some frogs' legs, even if they do "taste like chicken."
Please Just Take an Omega-3 Gel Capsule
Silver-Stripe Blaasop: This fish is reportedly delicious, but also reportedly deadly. If you don't remove the liver and reproductive organs, the toxins in this fish can lead to paralysis, breathing problems and even death -- a real problem, particularly if you want to taste/get killed by the other items on this list.
Got Milk? Got Health Insurance?
Raw Unpasteurized Milk: The name sounds so earthy and natural, but the truth of the matter is that the pasteurization process frees milk of pathogens that your body can do without -- like salmonella, escherichia and brucella. Also, as yummy as that raw milk cheese may be to cheese lovers, there's a reason why the FDA considered banning these cheeky curds.
Jamaica's Killer Fruit
Ackee: This undoubtedly beautiful food is Jamaica's national fruit, and is prepared with saltfish to make the country's national dish. Problem is, the edible portion of the fruit, the yellow arilli, surrounds toxic black seeds. As if that's not enough, when unripe, the fruit contains a poison called hypoglycin, requiring special handling and preparation. Ack!
Your Nose Knows
Durians: Reportedly, this Southeast Asian fruit can be deadly when combined with alcohol, but that's not the only risk it presents. It can prove fatal when falling from a high-hanging limb onto your noggin', and can even kill something else: your relationship. According to Anthony Bourdain on
No Reservations, after eating it "your breath will smell as if you'd been French-kissing your dead grandmother."
An All-American Choking Hazard
Hot Dogs: Last year the American Pediatric Society recommended a "redesign" of the hot dog, noting that its cylindrical shape made it a prime culprit in children's choking deaths. Yup, move over Ghostface -- a hot-dog suit is the new scariest Halloween costume.
import from: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/zagat/deadly-lethal-foods_b_1063781.html#s440184&title=An_AllAmerican_Choking
