Incubation period of mild sugarcane poisoning

Sugarcane is a very sweet plant. Many people who like sweets like to chew sugarcane because it contains a lot of sugar and a lot of water, so it tastes very sweet. However, sugarcane may also cause food poisoning in people. This poisoning will not occur immediately and has a certain incubation period. So how long is the incubation period of mild sugarcane poisoning?

Sugarcane used for making sugar is called "sugar cane", sugarcane used for fresh consumption is called "fruit cane", and there is also sugarcane that can be used for both making sugar and being eaten fresh. There are many varieties of sugarcane, which can be divided into three types based on skin color: green-skinned sugarcane, red-skinned sugarcane and purple-skinned sugarcane.

The skin of red sugarcane is purple-red, reddish-brown and shiny; the skin of purple sugarcane is purple or purple-black and shiny; the skin of green sugarcane is blue-yellow or blue-green, and is also smooth and shiny. When buying sugarcane, you should pay attention to the following points:

(1) Choose sugarcane with fresh skin, straight stems, thick stem circumference, even stems, flat and neat nodes, and no cracks, insect bites, or shrinkage. Sugarcane borers usually hide in the nodes, so you should observe carefully when purchasing.

(2) Sugarcane with long internodes and loose texture is easy to chew; sugarcane with short internodes, coarse texture and strong sweetness is also suitable for purchase.

(3) Choose those with thin skin, easy to peel, tender meat, juicy, sweet taste, and no unpleasant flavors.

(4) Choose those with short and fine fibers, which are crispy when chewed, with little residue and small amounts of broken pieces.

What to do if you are poisoned by moldy sugarcane

(1) Toxic components and poisoning mechanism: Moldy sugarcane is soft in texture, and the flesh is darker than normal sugarcane, light brown in color, and has a slight musty odor. A fungus called Arthrospora sacchari can be isolated from moldy sugarcane. Its toxin is 3-nitropropionic acid, a neurotoxin that mainly damages the central nervous system.

(2) Symptoms of poisoning: The incubation period is short, the shortest being only a dozen minutes. The initial symptoms of poisoning are temporary digestive tract dysfunction, nausea, vomiting, abdominal pain, diarrhea, and black stools, followed by neurological symptoms.

Such as dizziness, headache, black eyes and double vision. In severe cases, paroxysmal convulsions may occur. During convulsions, the limbs become rigid, flexed and internally rotated, the hands become like chicken claws, the eyeballs stare upward, the pupils dilate, and then the person falls into a coma. Patients may die from respiratory failure, and survivors may be left with severe neurological sequelae, leading to lifelong disability.

(3) Treatment and preventive measures: There is currently no special treatment. Gastric lavage and enema should be performed as soon as possible after poisoning to eliminate the poison, and symptomatic treatment should be given. Preventive measures include:

①Sugarcane must be harvested after it matures, because immature sugarcane is prone to mildew;

②Sugarcane should be sold immediately after it is cut and should not be stored;

③ Sugarcane should be prevented from mildewing during storage, and the storage time should not be too long. The sugarcane should be regularly inspected for sensory problems, and sugarcane that has become mildewed should not be sold;

④ Strengthen education on preventing poisoning caused by moldy sugarcane, and educate the public not to buy or eat moldy sugarcane.

Conclusion: When we buy sugarcane, we must be careful about sugarcane mold and must choose sugarcane of good quality.