Shrimp skin is a common food that is often used to enhance the freshness and flavor of various dishes or soups. Shrimp skin not only contains high-quality protein, but also rich minerals such as calcium scales. When choosing shrimp skin, it's not necessarily the whiter the color, the better. Today, Shenfen Instrument will share with you the unknown safety risks in shrimp skin, how to choose shrimp skin, and how to eat shrimp skin healthily.

Safety hazards of shrimp skin:

1、 There are various forms of shrimp on the market, and we should be aware that some merchants use sulfur to smoke shrimp in order to attract customers' attention and make the color of shrimp better. Because smoked shrimp skin will become whiter and also extend its shelf life. This is because sulfur dioxide is produced during the sulfur smoking process, which has bleaching and preservative effects. However, shrimp skin products are prohibited from being smoked with sulfur. Long term intake of sulfur dioxide can cause respiratory diseases, and in severe cases, it can lead to laryngeal spasms, laryngeal edema, bronchial spasms. Inhalation in large quantities can cause pulmonary edema, suffocation, coma, and even death.

2、 There are also some shrimp skins on the market that look very moist and white in color, and have a slightly pungent smell. These shrimp skins are likely to have been soaked in formaldehyde, and excessive intake of foods containing formaldehyde can increase the risk of cancer.

3、 Shrimp skins should be consumed promptly or stored in a dry and constant temperature environment after purchase. The shrimp skin I bought back is very fresh, but after a few months in the refrigerator, I found that the shrimp skin turned yellow and had a smell of ammonia water. It is not recommended to consume such shrimp skin again. Because the proteins contained in shrimp skin spoil and deteriorate under the action of microorganisms, some lower amines are also produced during the process of spoilage. These lower amines can also react with the small amount of nitrite contained in shrimp skin to form nitrosamines, which are carcinogens. Therefore, shrimp skin like this is best discarded.

4、 There may be some sand and nitrite present in the shrimp skin, as well as other harmful substances produced during storage. Therefore, it is recommended to soak the shrimp skin in hot water two or three times before consumption to reduce the residual harmful substances in the shrimp skin. At the same time, shrimp skin has a relatively high salt content, so it is not recommended to eat too much at once.

How to choose good shrimp skin?

1. Look: The shrimp shell is white, transparent or pale yellow, with a complete head and tail, and a hooked tail. If the head and body are already separated, they are not as high-quality.

2. Smell: Good shrimp skin has the fishy aroma of seafood, while sulfur fumigation or formaldehyde soaking can have a stimulating taste. Poor quality shrimp skin may have a rotten and spoiled odor.

3. Grasp: Good dried shrimp skin is suitable. Hold it tightly with your hands and release it, and the shrimp skin will spread out one by one. However, shrimp skin soaked in formaldehyde is moist and white, and when squeezed tightly with your hands and released, it is not easy to spread out.

4. Inspection: Use the CSY series food safety analyzer of Shenfen Instrument to filter and screen shrimp skins that have been illegally bleached, fumigated, and have exceeded nitrite levels on the market. The CSY series food safety analyzer from Shenfen Instrument can effectively, simply, quickly, quantitatively, and accurately detect the content of sulfur dioxide, formaldehyde, and nitrite in shrimp skin. Add a strong line of defense for selecting and maintaining the safety of shrimp skins.