Insects are more nutritious than meat or fish!

NOBODY LOVES me, everybody hates me, I'm going to go eat some worms! This was a ditty that my daughters were taught by their friend Gayatri Radhakrishnan, who learnt it from an American schoolmate.It expresses that forlorn feeling of a child who wants to do something awful simply because she feels ignored or rejected. Note that the idea of eating worms comes to her as an undesirable thing. She wants to fall sick eating them so that she can then attract attention and affection.

Well, eating worms may be culturally unacceptable in some societies but chances are that it might not make you fall ill. On the other hand, it turns out to be a pretty nutritious thing to do! The acceptability or aversion to eating worms and insects, or any kind of food for that matter, is largely determined by one's cultural background, up bringing, prejudices or predilections. Many orthodox Iyengars or Jains do not touch garlic or onions. My grandmother would not look at turnips or even radishes, while my mother-in-law ate raw radish (as do her daughter and son-in-law). Vegetarianism is largely cultural in origin, though it has gathered some religious, ethical and even health-and-hygiene support. Even among meat-eaters, there is hesitation and nose- wrinkling when some of them are presented with delicacies like Japanese Sushi of raw fish, Steak Tartar (marinated, minced raw beef to which brandy is added and set fire for a minute), caviar (a mass or roe of eggs of the sturgeon fish) or liverwurst. While gourmets in Europe delight in a bowl of mussels, they might not find a meal of worms or insects appealing. Yet this is what many other cultures do.

Hornet juice and Olympics marathon

The most noteworthy instance in this regard was the confession made by the women's marathon winner at the Sydney Olympics a few weeks ago. Miss Naoko Takahashi, who brought name and fame to her Japan with the marathon gold, attributed her success to the boost she got to her stamina by drinking hornet juice! She said she frequently drank hornet juice during training, and the race itself, after some Japanese scientists discovered that it has the astonishing ability of boosting human vigour and endurance. The giant killer hornet (Vespa Mandarina Japonica), whose juice she drank, has the awesome ability to fly as far as 60 miles a day, with a peak speed of 20 mph. The energy source appears to be a bitter- tasting acidic juice that the adult hornet has in its stomach. (It is this that Naoko drank).

The way the hornets make this juice is interesting. They feed their young grubs (the soft thick worm- like larvae) by killing other insects, chewing the meat into a ball and feeding the babies who are waiting in underground nests.After eating, the grub produces a few drops of a clear liquid, which is passed on to the adult in a "kiss". This juice helps the adult, among other things, to digest solid food, which it cannot otherwise!

Scientists at the Institute of Physical and Chemical Research, near Tokyo, Japan collected the juice from the grubs in some 80 hornet nests (without stirring them up too much, one presumes) and analyzed it. They found it to contain a mixture of amino acids and other metabolites that reduced human muscle fatigue, slowed the build-up of the pain-inducing lactic acid and improved the body's efficiency. They tested the juice on swimming mice and on students on exercise bicycles. In both cases, those who had taken the juice performed almost twice as well as those who had not! It was this research that led Naoko to drink it for her marathon race. The Meiji Food Company in Japan has now produced a synthetic version that tastes better. When given to mice and to people, it is seen to dramatically enhance their endurance performance, increase the body's ability to metabolize fats and reduce lactic acid production.I wonder however whether this juice will be allowed in official sports competitions, since it is synthetic and may be classified as a "performance enhancing substance". The hornet juice that Naoko Takahashi took was not declared illegal since it is a natural product!

Why just juice - eat the whole insect!

When it is the grubs that produce the strength juice and not the hornets, why take it from the latter and not go to the primary source itself and eat a mouthful of the energy-rich grubs? Indeed, as many as 32 different ethnic groups from the Amazon region in South America make these an important part of their diet. Dr. M. Paoletti and colleagues report in a recent issue of the Proceedings of the Royal Society, London (B267, 2247, 2000) that these tribes use as food ants, termites, caterpillars and earthworms. The authors point out that the Ye'Kuana people of Venezuela even "farm" large earthworms by introducing them into worm-poor patches and harvest them, the way we plant and harvest food crops.

When attempting to gather more information about "worms as human food" on the web through the search engine google.com, I found a fascinating fact sheet put out by the Ohio State University on insects as human food. It points out that eating of worms and insects is quite prevalent in many parts of the world. Village markets in Mexico sell them by the pound to be fried and eaten. You can buy cans of fried grasshoppers and chocolate covered ants. Some Colombians grind up ants and use them as a spread on bread.In parts of Africa, some insects such as termites are eaten raw after catching. It occurs to me that this is a habit that goes back to our ape ancestry; recall the National Geographic Magazine's coverage of Dr.Jane Goodall's discovery of how apes poke a wet twig in termite hills and feast off those sticking to the twig. Other insects such as beetle grubs, caterpillars and grasshoppers are baked or fried, broiled or sauteed with vegetables. Grubs are popular for cooks in Papua New Guinea, most often boiled or roasted over an open fire.

Insects are more nutritious!

Do not carry the impression that these are only eaten by primitive people who are too poor or too uncivilized to be able to afford better dishes. Firstly, there are restaurants in Washington DC (yes, in America) which serve stir-fried mealworms and caterpillar crunch. Professor Tom Turpin of Purdue University enjoys "Chocolate Chirpy Chips". In making them, one adds roasted crickets (sans wings and legs) to the cookie dough and bakes the cookie chips. Provided below is the recipe for the interested. Secondly, these are nutritionally better than beef or fish. The OSU fact sheet points out that for every 100 gram serving of each, termites provide 617 calories of energy while lean ground beef gives 219 and fish (broiled cod) gives 170. The protein content of 100 grams of caterpillar is 28.2 grams (termite 14.2g) while that of beef is 27.4 and fish 28.5g. The vitamin and micronutrient contents of these insects are several- fold higher too. And insects are low in cholesterol and in fat. Believe it or not, many insects are far cleaner than other creatures. For example, grasshoppers and crickets eat clean, green plants whereas crabs and lobsters eat any kind of foul and decomposing material as scavengers.

And, here is a revealing thought. Most Americans are probably already eating a pound or two of insects each year; they have been ground up in strawberry jams, peanut butter, spaghetti sauce, apple sauce, frozen chopped vegetables and so on. We Indians probably eat just as much, if not more! These are in the true sense "organic" food, and in any event not harmful as the residual pesticides that cling on to food grains, vegetables and fruits despite washing are. So, you don't have to feel queasy about eating insects and worms, particularly if you are a meat- eater.

Recipe for chocolate chirpy chip cookies

Perhaps the more adventurous among you may want to try the Thomas Turpin recipe for chocolate chirpy chip cookies. Recipe: Take 2( cups of flour, 1 tsp. baking soda, 1 tsp. salt, 1 cup butter, softened, 3/4 cup sugar, 3/4 cup brown sugar, 1tsp Vanilla, 2 eggs, one 12-ounce packet of chocolate chips, 1 cup chopped nuts and 1/2 cup dry-roasted crickets. Preheat oven to 375F. In small bowl, combine flour, baking soda and salt, set aside. In large bowl, combine butter, sugar brown sugar and vanilla, beat until creamy. Beat in eggs. Gradually add flour mixture and insects, mix well. Stir in chocolate chips. Drop by rounded measuring teaspoonfuls onto ungreased cookie sheet. Bake for 8-10minutes.

What is there for strict vegetarians? Propolis.

Come to think of it, the hornet juice that Naoko drank is just as vegetarian and should be just as acceptable as milk, since it does not have any meat such as muscles or bones. For those who drink milk, hornet juice is but one step ahead. But should you feel still uncomfortable about it, here is a substance that honeybees make which should be just as acceptable to you as honey is. Apart from honey, which is coveted and enjoyed as a health- aid even by the strictest of vegetarian, the honeycomb of the bees has another edible substance called propolis or bee bread, or hive dross. It is a darkish resinous substance found in beehives, collected by bees from buds. It is produced from a mixture of pollen, tree bark and other plant components and is used for the construction of their hives as well as a sealant for repair and embalming. Propolis has long been known to have an antimicrobial effect (the bees most likely use it, among other things to keep their honey-and wax-rich lives sterile and free of microbial infections. Living together as a thousands-strong colony in a single hive in good health is not easy unless some protective measures are taken. For centuries, rural folk in South America have used propolis to fight many diseases, promote healing, improve body immunity, reduce pain and inflammation, as an antibiotic and as a general tonic. Currently, firms such as Rainforest Botanicals (in Brazil and US) have initiated clinical studies in order to validate its properties and bridge the gap between folk tradition and laboratory data.

Analysis shows propolis to be a rich source of minerals, vitamins B, C and E, provitamin A, a range of amino acids, fats and bioflavonoids.Recent research published in the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry finds propolis to be an excellent antioxidant and even an anti-cancer substance! It is thus apparent that propolis offers us one of nature's most potent and versatile nutritional supplements. There are some companies in the U.S. that sell propolis tablets. I am certain there are places and people in India who use it and even sell it, and I would like to get some details on these - perhaps Siddha and Unani centres (since my perfunctory inquiries in Ayurvedic places have proved fruitless).

D. Balasubramanian

L.V. Prasad Eye Insitute

Hyderabad - 500 034.

Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

Section  : Science & Tech
Previous : Question Corner
Next     : Net-enabled Hand Speak