CDC WARNING: This Idaho Animal Can Give You Brain Worms

Nature has plenty of options for us to choose from when we're hungry, especially in Idaho. You can enjoy something common like cattle or the variety of fish in Idaho's rivers.

There is one animal, though, that the Center for Disease Control says you should beware of consuming.

A case of brain worms

In what sounds like something out of a sci-fi horror film, the CDC reported that a family of six in South Dakota had been infected with trichinellosis. According to the CDC, trichinellosis is a "parasitic zoonotic disease transmitted through the consumption of meat from animals infected with Trichinella spp. nematodes."

These parasitic worms are microscopic, and reach the brain, causing all sorts of issues including fever, stomach pain, depression, swelling of the eyes, and more.

The CDC says that the most common way to contract this terrifying condition is by consuming wild game meat. In the case of the family in South Dakota, the animal they consumed was a black bear which is common in Idaho.

Apparently, members of the family that initially tried the black bear meat said it was undercooked before they cooked it some more. The family also reported that the meat was frozen before they prepared to cook it. The CDC says that freezing wild game meat won't necessarily eliminate trichinellosis either. In some cases, trichinellosis has been shown to be resistant to freezing temperatures.

Idaho's Waste of Game Law might be interesting to some as it states that black bears are one of the few animals you can kill and leave the meat behind. You don't have to consume black bears at all.

All of this being said, we've never tried black bear and are curious as to what it tastes like. Would we try it after hearing about a case of brain worms?

Probably not...