Two mistakes when eating pickled vegetables on Tet holiday that are harmful to health

Eating newly pickled melons, melons contaminated with toxins or consuming too much are harmful to health and pose a risk of poisoning, especially for people with digestive diseases.

Physician Bui Dac Sang, Academy of Science and Technology, Hanoi Oriental Medicine Association, said that pickled cabbage and pickled onions are indispensable in Tet dishes to balance dishes such as banh chung and fatty meat. Pickled cabbage also contains probiotics, beneficial bacteria, which stimulate digestion, support intestinal activity, and strengthen the immune system. If eaten and pickled properly, it will not affect health.

However, many people eat pickles incorrectly, causing harm, as follows:

Eat freshly pickled melon

Associate Professor, Dr. Nguyen Duy Thinh, former staff of the Institute of Biotechnology and Food, Hanoi University of Science and Technology, said that the pickling process will involve a reaction that converts nitrate (a residual substance in vegetables and tubers due to urea fertilizer or absorption from soil with high nitrate) into nitrite. In the first 2-3 days of pickling, the nitrite content increases, then gradually decreases and disappears when the pickles are yellow and sour. Nitrite in the body reacts with amino acids, forming nitrozamin compounds, which can cause cancer. Therefore, for good health, you should not eat newly pickled pickles.

Eating melon is not safe

In fact, for thousands of years, Asian countries have used cabbage and eggplant to make pickles, becoming a culinary culture of many countries. Pickled cabbage is popular with many people, a side dish that goes well with rice, processed by creating a salty environment for fermentation by microorganisms. Through the fermentation process, harmful microorganisms are inhibited, helping cabbage and eggplant to be preserved longer. However, pickled cabbage is contaminated with pesticides during the cultivation process, and people who eat it can be poisoned, so be careful.

Mr. Thinh noted that pickled cabbage is salty, so healthy people should only eat about 5 mg of salt per day. The pickling process should use ceramic or porcelain utensils, not plastic containers.

Pickled melon is a popular dish during Tet to prevent indigestion. Photo: Bui Thuy — Pickled melon is a popular dish during Tet to prevent indigestion. Photo: *Bui Thuy*

Who should not eat pickles?

Dr. Nguyen Trong Hung, National Institute of Nutrition, said that pickled melons also pose potential health risks, especially for certain groups of people who should not eat them.

The first is people with stomach problems. Pickles and pickled onions contain a lot of acid due to the fermentation process. When you eat a lot of pickled onions, your stomach will increase gastric juice secretion, the acid will affect the inner lining, and at the same time make inflammation and ulcers more serious.

Second is people with kidney disease, high blood pressure. Pickled cabbage is fermented and preserved by soaking in salt, so the amount of salt in it is very large. According to regulations, the average amount of salt consumed per day is only about 5g, in addition, it also depends on body weight, gender, age...

People with kidney disease, high blood pressure People need to eat less salt than normal people, so if you eat too much pickled vegetables, it means that your body has absorbed a large amount of sodium, increasing the risk of high blood pressure and kidney disease. In particular, patients with kidney failure have poor ability to excrete sodium, so eating pickled vegetables causes salt to accumulate in the body, which can cause edema and high blood pressure.

Pregnant women should not eat too much pickled onions and pickled cabbage. During pregnancy, the mother's digestive system becomes sensitive, especially when morning sickness occurs. Eating pickles can cause irritation, increase the feeling of fullness and nausea. Especially in the last months of pregnancy, you need to eat a bland diet to avoid edema and pregnancy poisoning.

Besides, the characteristic of pickles is the sour and pungent taste. Therefore, if used too much, it can cause bad breath and body odor, the reason is that the odor-causing substances in onions will be absorbed into the body and excreted through sweat glands.

Doctor Hung recommends not eating too many pickles that have a strange smell or are yellow, should eat a small amount at a time, should not eat continuously and for a long time.

Besides, people should eat pickled cucumbers themselves rather than buying them from stores. Pickling cucumbers yourself helps you adjust the amount of salt added and ensures clean food, no additives, no preservatives, and clean pickling tools. Note that leftover pickled cucumbers should not be put back into the jar because it can easily spoil the existing cucumbers; use clean spoons and chopsticks to pick up the cucumbers; cover the jar tightly and store in the refrigerator.

Thuy Quynh

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