Tiger chrimp

Shrimp are marine crustaceans with more than 100 subspecies. Each type is characterized by a special size, weight, structure and taste of meat. It is these crustaceans that are a frequent guest of street food, niche and famous restaurants. In retail chains, the product is sold in raw or boiled-frozen form. It’s quite easy to tell them apart: raw shrimp has a gray-green hue, while boiled-frozen shrimp will be pink. The product is perfect for making soup, paella, curry variations, various snacks and even molecular cuisine.

Tiger shrimps managed to win the greatest popularity. In size, they are superior to other varieties and can reach a weight of 650 grams. Outwardly, the crustacean is distinguished by the characteristic dark stripes on the shell. Another difference lies in the structure and taste of the meat. Tiger prawns are more tender, and taste like boiled crayfish. What you need to know about tiger prawns, how else do they differ from other crustaceans, and is it worth spending a lot of money on a dinner of these seafood?

Taxonomy

Penaeus monodon (tiger shrimp) was first described in 1789 by Johann Christian Fabricius. Fabricius is a Danish entomologist who devoted the basis of his scientific works to the study and classification of insects. For unknown reasons, information about this crustacean was not popular until 1949. It was at this time that the Dutch scientist Lipke Holtheis explained to the public what class the tiger shrimp belongs to, and why they should be paid attention to. It was Holtheis who contributed to the qualitative and complete systematization of this species. Tiger shrimps are one of the varieties of decapod crayfish from the suborder Dendrobranchiata. The animal is common in the warm waters of the Pacific and Indian oceans. The primary stage of shrimp formation is the planktonic nauplius larva. What it is? Literally from Greek, the name translates as “a floating animal with a shell.” This is a planktonic larva that forms in many species of crustaceans, not just tiger shrimp. Later, the nauplius transforms into an ordinary shrimp, which will live a free life or turn out to be someone’s dinner.

There are absolutely no segments on the body of the nauplius. It develops all 3 appendages: sensitive antennae in front of the mouth for absorption of nutrients and special swimming processes for movement. The animal has a parietal eye. It is an unpaired organ that is sensitive to sunlight. It perceives the degree of ultraviolet radiation and regulates all the daily and seasonal rhythms of the animal.

Between the upper paired jaw of the mandible and the anus of the nauplius is the so-called growth zone. It is from the growth zone that special segments with limbs are formed over time. Once this happens, the nauplius will move on to the next stage and become a metanauplius. Metanauplius is another step on the way to the formation of a full-fledged adult.

Industrial breeding of tiger shrimps was made possible thanks to the presence of the nauplius stage. From the 90 of the 20th century, world production amounts to 900 thousand tons per year. More than ⅔ of the products are supplied by specialized shrimp farms, the remaining volume is obtained from natural habitats.

Shrimp molds are a type of aquaculture that specializes in raising shrimp. Such farms most often breed tiger shrimp, since their sale is much more profitable and in demand. ^[1].

The name of the animal was formed due to a distinctive external feature – black stripes along the body. The shrimp itself reaches an average of 36 centimeters in length. Thanks to this size and large weight, the tiger shrimp has become the largest representative of Dendrobranchiata. ^[2].

Its natural habitat:

• east coast of Africa;
• Suez Canal;
• Mediterranean Sea;
• Arabian Peninsula;
• Southeast Asia;
• Japanese Sea;
• eastern australia ^[3].

In 2010, Penaeus monodon was listed by Greenpeace as a marine life at risk. ^[4]. Virtually every supermarket sells tiger shrimp, and anglers around the world catch an abnormal number of animals.

Useful properties of seafood

Tiger prawns are considered a dietary product due to their low calorie content and a huge range of useful nutrients in their composition. ^[5], ^[6].

Protein, which abounds in seafood, is much easier to digest by the human body ^[7]. Animal protein from chicken/beef/pork is much longer and more difficult for the digestive system to digest, which can cause pain, heaviness or fatigue. Moreover, there are absolutely no carbohydrates in the composition of shrimp, which allows you to choose any high-calorie side dish to your taste and the minimum concentration of healthy fat, which will not provoke pressure surges and an increase in cholesterol levels. ^[8], ^[9].

The product contains a high concentration of tocopherol (vitamin E). This component protects the body from the effects of free radicals, increases the protective functions of the immune system, and has a beneficial effect on the functioning of the cardiovascular system. But the main advantage of seafood is omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids. They have an anti-inflammatory effect, prevent the development of atherosclerotic plaques, normalize the function of hematopoiesis and regulate blood pressure. Omega-3 is the key to beautiful skin, a healthy heart, strong immunity and full activity during the day. ^[10].

Astaxanthin

This is a carotenoid that is responsible for the color of shrimp when cooked. It is astaxanthin that gives the pleasant red color to cooked seafood.

At one time, scientists called this substance “supervatamin E”. Why? Astaxanthin traps free radicals and prevents them from reaching the skin to age and damage it. The substance is 2 times more effective than retinol (vitamin A) and tocopherol (vitamin E), because it has two additional oxygen atoms on each six-membered ring ^[11]. This gives:

• improvement of energy metabolism;
• normalization of cholesterol levels in the blood;
• protection and treatment of skin from eczema, itching, allergic rashes, acne and post-acne;
• anti-inflammatory effect;
• accelerating the regeneration of wounds in the stomach, which are formed during ulcers and gastritis;
• protection of the retina from the harmful effects of ultraviolet radiation and the oxidation process;
• improved collagen synthesis, which contributes to maintaining skin elasticity and slowing down aging ^[12].

Selenium

The record concentration of selenium is found in tiger prawns. The substance is necessary for the body for the proper functioning of the thyroid gland. The thyroid gland, in turn, is responsible for the regulation of hormonal and psycho-emotional levels. Regular consumption of seafood can really protect against endocrine problems and improve mood after a meal.

Selenium also has a beneficial effect on metabolic processes within the body. This is facilitated by the enzyme thyroxin. It speeds up metabolism and helps the gastrointestinal tract work better.

Lack of selenium may be fraught with the development of breast cancer.

How to choose seafood

To be as confident and calm as possible about the quality of the selected product, make purchases in large and reputable chains, specialized fish shops or directly from the supplier ^[13]. Forget frozen shrimp from the ice cream fridge at your neighborhood convenience store. Seafood poisoning is not the most pleasant and safe thing, so be aware of the risks and take care of your own health.

It is best to choose a product from a well-known manufacturer. If you’ve seen the company’s ads on TV or get their mailing list, great. Such a company assumes certain obligations and will definitely face the law if you are not satisfied with the quality of the products.

You can buy tiger prawns both by weight and in the package. It’s just a matter of convenience, not quality or taste. The main thing is that seafood looks good, has an even, smooth color and has a bent tail.

A straight tail indicates that the shrimp died before freezing. There are no useful properties left in such a seafood, and the method of preparing the product itself is cruel and unacceptable. Only with shock freezing, when the shrimp does not feel pain, can the nutritional properties of the meat be preserved.

Dry shell, unnatural shades and local dark / light spots are direct evidence of a damaged product. Seafood should not be stored in an abundance of ice or snowballs. Such shrimp may have been subjected to several freeze/thaws, which kills the useful vitamin and nutrient composition, depriving the product of value.

Possible harm to seafood

Only people with individual intolerance should exclude tiger shrimps from the diet. ^[14]. Seafood has no other direct contraindications. But there are two important aspects to pay attention to – mercury and plastic. How do these substances compare with tiger prawns, and is it really necessary to give up seafood?

Plastic

An enormous amount of human waste enters the world’s oceans. One of the most dangerous elements is plastic. Plastic bottles thrown into the water do not sink, but remain on the surface. Over time, all plastic containers accumulate in entire islands and destroy the marine microflora. Scientists identify several such clusters, but the most famous and dangerous is the Great Pacific Garbage Patch.

There are such garbage patches in every ocean. They are formed by currents due to discarded debris from the decks of ships and waste that comes from nearby continents.

Why is it harmful? Waste disturbs the natural balance and marine microflora. They gradually release harmful toxic components into the water, which infect the fish and the water itself. Moreover, numerous pieces of plastic are mistaken for food by fish and animals. Marine life constantly swallows lighters, bottle caps, plastic bags, which, through the biological chain, fall on our plate.

Seafood lovers eat around 11 thousands of the smallest plastic particles annually. Most of the waste remains inside the body and gradually poisons it.

What can be done? First of all, stop throwing garbage past specialized bins. If you simply ditch plastic bags in favor of paper or regular bags, you are already making an invaluable contribution to the ecological stability of the planet.

What are the predictions? If the situation does not change, by the end of the century most of the seafood will become unfit for human consumption. We will deprive ourselves of the world’s oceans with our own hands and increase the amount of plastic consumed from 11 to 800 and more than thousands per year.

Mercury

How did mercury appear in the world’s oceans? Water arteries are also exposed to mercury releases, as is air. In the liquid itself and organic compounds, the concentration of the substance is minimal; marine life suffers from mercury to a greater extent. The concentration of heavy metal is mainly responsible for nature. Most of the mercury emissions are related to the functionality of volcanoes. The remaining volume belongs to mankind – coal combustion at thermal power plants, gold mining, waste disposal and smelting of non-ferrous metals.

Algae is the first chain of infection. They absorb harmful compounds from the water and become dangerous. Organisms that are higher up in the food chain ingest the algae and also become infected. This chain ends with large predators and humans. With each new organism, the concentration of a dangerous compound increases, and not a fish, but a set of toxic compounds ends up on our table.

Why is mercury dangerous? It is a heavy toxic metal that can be in a liquid state of aggregation at room temperature (the only metal with this property). The substance causes the development of serious neurological diseases. Elevated mercury content provokes Parkinson’s disease, Alzheimer’s, severe depressive states and autism spectrum disorders. Also, high concentrations of mercury cause high blood pressure, an increase in cholesterol levels and a maximum risk of developing heart attacks.

How to protect yourself from mercury and plastic

Absolutely to refuse tiger shrimps, fish and other seafood there is no need. They are much more beneficial in the form of easily digestible protein, polyunsaturated fatty acids, vitamins and minerals, rather than harm.

Tiger prawns can be cooked for dinner 2-3 times a week without fear of the toxic effects of metal and plastics. It is 2-3 servings per week that are considered the optimal allowable and safe amount, even for pregnant / lactating women and children.

Keep track of the quality of consumed seafood, participate in the environmental protection of the planet and be healthy!

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