# Are oysters alive when you eat them? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [December 24, 2018, 1:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-oysters-alive-when-you-eat-them/826596 "2018-12-24T01:38:42Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Annie-Xmas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecc23a/32.png) [@Annie-Xmas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annie-Xmas)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2018, 3:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-oysters-alive-when-you-eat-them/826596/21 "2018-12-24T15:05:24Z")
I guess you could reenact that one scene from Hannibal if you really wanted to. And googling “Meiwes” will get you more information on “vore” than you ever wanted to know. ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2018, 3:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-oysters-alive-when-you-eat-them/826596/22 "2018-12-24T15:18:58Z")
> [@Colibri](#): > > Some think removing them from the shell just before swallowing them kills them. However, considering you can do a lot of damage to worms and other invertebrates without killing them I think they probably don’t actually die until they are chewed up. > [@Colibri](#): > > Sea urchin sushi, which is actually the animals gonads, is prepared from the living animal. The gonads themselves contain living eggs and sperm. This also opens the question of what “eaten alive” actually means, especially in the case of invertebrates with rudimentary brains. Even animals as advanced as chickens and snakes can run around or move for some time after decapitation, and a frog’s heart will beat for a long time even after it has removed from the body.\* In the case of other seafood eaten raw, the cells may be alive for some time even after the animal has been cut up. \*Traditionally, [frog shashimi](https://soranews24.com/2012/05/20/extreme-sashimi-frog-edition/)is served including the still-beating heart of the frog, which is consumed first. (Warning: videos may be disturbing.) ---
**Author:** ![voltaire](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voltaire/32/313_2.png) [@voltaire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/voltaire)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2018, 3:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-oysters-alive-when-you-eat-them/826596/23 "2018-12-24T15:46:27Z")
> [@Johnny\_L.A](#): > > Follow-on question: Are there other foods from the animal kingdom that we eat when they’re still alive? There are lots of living foods, particularly if you include fermented foods, like yogurts and cheeses. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2018, 3:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-oysters-alive-when-you-eat-them/826596/24 "2018-12-24T15:54:35Z")
> [@voltaire](#): > > There are lots of living foods, particularly if you include fermented foods, like yogurts and cheeses. I think yeasts are classified as members of the fungus kingdom. I’m asking about ‘animals’ in the sense of things like oysters, birds, cats, and things. (And no, I don’t eat warm-blooded things alive.) And just to be clear, I don’t mean things that are dead but commonly eaten raw. ---
**Author:** ![lingyi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/d2c977/32.png) [@lingyi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lingyi)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2018, 4:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-oysters-alive-when-you-eat-them/826596/25 "2018-12-24T16:36:30Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > [not moderating] > > So, with this “herbal medicine”, her rash persisted for months, and still didn’t go away? That sounds like whatever she was doing was absolutely terrible, since rashes will usually go away _much_ quicker than that with no medicine at all. Is it possible that she was allergic to those “herbs”? She had/has? an allergic reaction to rubber and latex products because she wanted to be a chef (went to England to train) and her first job was produce prep, handling and cleaning cases of fruits and vegetables. I made her quit her job and Western doctors said it was because she absorbed too much of the the latex in the gloves (which is supposed to be natural) and from the trace amounts of pesticides left on the produce. 35 years ago, Western medicine they didn’t have any kind of cure or real diagnosis of what the real cause was. Direct contact with with latex related product, even the fumes from latex paint would cause her to get a fine red bumpy rash over whatever part of her body was exposed, and a lesser effect over the rest of her body. Her Mom finally convinced her to see a Chinese herbalist and the doctor immediately said her body was full of poison (yin/yang imbalance) and said he could fully cure it. She visited him weekly for a few months and he gave her various combinations which varied from bad smelling to absolutely vile. To her tremendous credit, she kept drinking it (herbs boiled in three bowls of water until it’s reduced to one), including the last batch which included dried scorpions (poison to fight poison) because it helped tremendously. She quit after the batch with the dried scorpions (don’t blame her) because she couldn’t take the cure anymore. Her rash was far more under control, but every once in a while, after eating crab or other seafood, she’s have a light breakout. ---
**Author:** ![Les\_Espaces\_Du\_Sommeil](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/les_espaces_du_sommeil/32/308_2.png) [@Les\_Espaces\_Du\_Sommeil](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Les_Espaces_Du_Sommeil)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2018, 5:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-oysters-alive-when-you-eat-them/826596/26 "2018-12-24T17:54:42Z")
Not technically alive but the [Dancing Squid](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nus-mOl1RVw) is one of the most disturbing things I’ve seen on Youtube. ---
**Author:** ![Beckdawrek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beckdawrek/32/3647_2.png) [@Beckdawrek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beckdawrek)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2018, 8:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-oysters-alive-when-you-eat-them/826596/27 "2018-12-24T20:11:38Z")
It’s pretty gross. Gahhhh! ---
**Author:** ![China\_Guy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/779978/32.png) [@China\_Guy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/China_Guy)\ **Post date:** [December 25, 2018, 2:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-oysters-alive-when-you-eat-them/826596/28 "2018-12-25T02:22:49Z")
> [@lingyi](#): > > China - Drunken shrimp - “Drowned” in liquor or Chinese wine and usually eaten alive These are really good but “drowned” isn’t quite the right description. These are put into Shaoxing rice wine at about 20% alcohol, and then kinda “alcohol burn” to death. When the plate is brought out, these maybe 1" long shrimp are bouncing around maybe a half inch above the plate. As time goes on, they quit moving. I think they are alive and alcohol poisoned but not sure. I remember living in Tokyo, and going to Midori Zushi. Which was very famous as a top quality sushi place at more reasonable prices. I never waited less than an hour in line and it was totally worth it. I remember going once, close to closing, and they had a Japanese lobster (doesn’t have the big claws) for a bargain price of about $40. It was brought out with the shell and sashimi slices, and the antenna wiggled around for about 5 minutes. It was sooooooooooo good. IIRC it was also made into a miso soup and one other dish. Simply divine and the moving antenna was icing on the cake ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [December 25, 2018, 4:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-oysters-alive-when-you-eat-them/826596/29 "2018-12-25T16:06:17Z")
> [@](#): > > I made her quit her job and Western doctors said it was because she absorbed too much of the the latex in the gloves (which is supposed to be natural) and from the trace amounts of pesticides left on the produce. Were these actual doctors? Because I’ve never heard of any real doctor attributing a rash to persistent “absorbed allergens”, but that’s exactly the kind of thing that peddlers of woo talk about. In other words, it sounds like your wife bounced from one type of useless quack to another type of useless, likely harmful, quack. ---
**Author:** ![lingyi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/d2c977/32.png) [@lingyi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lingyi)\ **Post date:** [December 25, 2018, 4:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-oysters-alive-when-you-eat-them/826596/30 "2018-12-25T16:48:46Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > Were these actual doctors? Because I’ve never heard of any real doctor attributing a rash to persistent “absorbed allergens”, but that’s exactly the kind of thing that peddlers of woo talk about. In other words, it sounds like your wife bounced from one type of useless quack to another type of useless, likely harmful, quack. As time as passed, I’ve mellowed my assessment of the doctors (she went to several specialists) from quacks to less knowledgeable and accepting of alternate (i.e. traditional medicine). Bottom line is her condition went from uncontrollable, as in her rash could recur at any time without warning (sometimes stress related), to being nearly 100% under control and occurrences being traceable to certain products, latex\*, petroleum based products like Vaseline and foods such as crab and duck. \*Latex allergy due to prolonged exposure is real [https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/latex-allergy/symptoms-causes/syc-20374287](https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/latex-allergy/symptoms-causes/syc-20374287). Her doctors postulated a connection between the constant exposure to the minute remnants of pesticides (some of which are petroleum based) on the produce (which she washed by the cases every day) and the latex gloves she wore all day. A surprising diagnosis given the possible Workman’s Comp implications, which she didn’t pursue. BTW, this all occurred over 35 years ago and we’ve been apart for over 25, so I don’t know if her condition improved or worsened. ---
**Author:** ![Broomstick](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/broomstick/32/246_2.png) [@Broomstick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Broomstick)\ **Post date:** [December 25, 2018, 8:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-oysters-alive-when-you-eat-them/826596/31 "2018-12-25T20:53:22Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > So, with this “herbal medicine”, her rash persisted for months, and still didn’t go away? That sounds like whatever she was doing was absolutely terrible, since rashes will usually go away _much_ quicker than that with no medicine at all. Is it possible that she was allergic to those “herbs”? Unless the rash was something like psoriasis or eczema or … ---
**Author:** ![kambuckta](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/53a042/32.png) [@kambuckta](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kambuckta)\ **Post date:** [December 25, 2018, 9:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-oysters-alive-when-you-eat-them/826596/32 "2018-12-25T21:01:28Z")
[Coconut worm larvae](https://backofthebiketours.com/eating-live-larvae-coconut-worm-bizarre-vietnamese-street-food/) in Vietnam. Yeah, nah. ---
**Author:** ![HMS\_Irruncible](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hms_irruncible/32/7394_2.png) [@HMS\_Irruncible](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HMS_Irruncible)\ **Post date:** [December 25, 2018, 9:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-oysters-alive-when-you-eat-them/826596/33 "2018-12-25T21:02:24Z")
Yeah in Japan I had a sea urchin where they pulled it right out of the ocean, cracked it open, and put it on my plate while it was still wiggling its spines I’m like, sorry little dude, not my fault God made you so yummy. ---
**Author:** ![Gatopescado](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gatopescado/32/5711_2.png) [@Gatopescado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatopescado)\ **Post date:** [December 25, 2018, 9:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-oysters-alive-when-you-eat-them/826596/34 "2018-12-25T21:28:16Z")
> [@Johnny\_L.A](#): > > Follow-on question: Are there other foods from the animal kingdom that we eat when they’re still alive? I never ‘kiss and tell’. ---
**Author:** ![lingyi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/d2c977/32.png) [@lingyi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lingyi)\ **Post date:** [December 25, 2018, 10:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-oysters-alive-when-you-eat-them/826596/35 "2018-12-25T22:38:37Z")
> [@Broomstick](#): > > Unless the rash was something like psoriasis or eczema or … Not really rash, more like hives, but starting out as really tiny bumps, like goosebumps only reddish and getting worse over time. Latex was definitely one of the causes, because one time she insisted on helping me paint a room with latex paint and before we were done, her arms looked like they had massive reddish goosebumps, each bump distinct from the other. It was clearest on her arms, which were exposed, but also starting to spread throughout the rest of her body. If she touched petroleum based products like Vaseline, she said she could tell her fingers were tingling and if it stayed on her skin, she’s get a contact breakout. Even Chapstick and other petroleum containing lipbalms would cause her lips to redden and blister. She had to use a clear hypoallergenic lipstick instead. ---
**Author:** ![PitJ](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/e9bcb4/32.png) [@PitJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PitJ)\ **Post date:** [December 27, 2018, 1:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-oysters-alive-when-you-eat-them/826596/36 "2018-12-27T13:01:14Z")
> [@Son\_of\_a\_Rich](#): > > So…no monkey brains? No, Dr. Jones. Not this time. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [December 27, 2018, 1:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-oysters-alive-when-you-eat-them/826596/37 "2018-12-27T13:35:17Z")
My brother sent me video he took at a restaurant where they presented a live fish on a platter and sliced sashimi from it for everyone at the table. ---
**Author:** ![MeanJoe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/meanjoe/32/5693_2.png) [@MeanJoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MeanJoe)\ **Post date:** [December 27, 2018, 2:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-oysters-alive-when-you-eat-them/826596/38 "2018-12-27T14:21:20Z")
Oh sweet Jesus. I hate Oysters so the odds of me ever eating one again were close to zero allowing for a future where I _might_ try one again just to make sure I wasn’t wrong before to hate them. I never knew they were alive when you ate them. The odds are now zero. Oh Christ… ugh, ew, GAH!!! ---
**Author:** ![GuanoLad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guanolad/32/42_2.png) [@GuanoLad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GuanoLad)\ **Post date:** [December 27, 2018, 2:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-oysters-alive-when-you-eat-them/826596/39 "2018-12-27T14:26:22Z")
Well, this is an unpleasant notion. I’ve never had raw oysters, so it doesn’t affect me, and when we used to have them when I was a lad they came canned and chilled, so no worries there really. Mind you, I used to watch my Dad skin rabbits and boil crayfish alive, so… now that I think about it, eating live oysters shouldn’t bother me. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [December 27, 2018, 4:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-oysters-alive-when-you-eat-them/826596/40 "2018-12-27T16:00:04Z")
Oh, thanks to **Colibria** for confirming my suspicion. > [@albino\_manatee](#): > > so … you never told us … did you eat the misfit? Hell, no. I was so glad it was easy to open… and so disappointed to see what was inside. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-oysters-alive-when-you-eat-them/826596.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-oysters-alive-when-you-eat-them/826596.md?page=3)