Warning: Eating slugs can be dangerous to your health.

A 21-year-old man from Sydney, Australia is currently in critical condition as a result of a foolish dare. The challenge was to simply eat a slug, bad idea, because he now he contracted a rat lungworm.

Rat lungworm or Angiostrongylus cantonensis is a parasitic infection in rats where the worm matures. Mollusks such as snails and slugs collect Angiostrongylus larvae by ingesting them in rat feces.

Contagion is by accident or, as in this case, intentionally ingesting raw snails and slugs. Lettuce and other leafy vegetables can also be a source if they are contaminated with small mollusks. Eating raw or undercooked shrimp and crabs that have eaten shellfish can also be a source of infection.

Many cases of rat lungworm are asymptomatic or show mild symptoms. However, rat lungworm can cause a very serious condition known as eosinophilic meningitis (since cerebrospinal fluid can have a high percentage of eosinophils). Symptoms may include headache, stiff neck, tingling sensation or pain on the skin, swelling of the brain, low-grade fever, nausea, and vomiting. Symptoms can last from weeks to months. Deaths have been reported.

Since the parasite eventually dies because it cannot mature and complete its life cycle in humans, treatment is usually not necessary. Usually treatment of symptoms; headache medications and steroids are all that is needed. Deworming drugs are generally ineffective against rat lungworm.

To avoid rat lungworm:

• Do not eat raw or undercooked snails or snails.

• Cook crabs and shrimp to kill larvae.

• Clean lettuce and other produce well.