'I eat until shiok': Singaporean lands herself in hospital after trying bags of insects at night market in Bangkok

One Singaporean woman took her taste buds on an 'adventure' in Thailand, and landed herself in hospital.

Taking to TikTok last Sunday (Jan 14), influencer Nicolette Wee said that she came across a stall selling freshly fried insects while walking around a night market in Bangkok.

The 30-second video showed Wee buying a bag of grasshoppers - to try. 

"So thick, fat and juicy," she quipped. "Oh my gosh, the crunch and the legs were dangling out. I eat until shiok, legit."

Wee said that she went back to the same stall for more creepy-crawly delights - this time a bag of silk worm larvae.

"Why my office pantry don't have these kinds of snacks?" she added.

[embed]https://www.tiktok.com/@nicolettecalliewe/video/7323554842511789320?is_from_webapp=1&sender_device=pc&web_id=7252157227077830162[/embed]

But it turns out that Wee's digestive system might have had a "culture shock'.

The Singaporean shared that she started having diarrhoea, and had to be admitted to a hospital. She later said that the hospital was in Singapore. 

Wee's video has since garnered over 290,000 views.

In the comments, several netizens say that her trip to the hospital was not worth it.

"Never eat their insects and seafood if you're travelling," a netizen said

"Some of these insects have parasites," another added.

AsiaOne has contacted Wee for more information.

Raw food gave woman food poisoning 

In August 2022, a Singaporean woman had food poisoning in Phuket after eating some 'dancing shrimp' - a street dish consisting of fresh live shrimp marinated in spicy sauce and herbs.

"The night after, we started vomiting continuously for six hours [and had] diarrhoea non-stop," she wrote in her TikTok video.

To minimise the risk of getting food poisoning while on holiday, some tips include choosing thoroughly cooked food, sticking to boiled water or bottled drinks, as well as avoiding unpasteurised dairy products such as milk and cheese.

Travellers can also consider packing anti-sickness medication, oral rehydration salts, anti-diarrhoea medication and antibiotics to self-medicate in the event of food poisoning.

Editor's note: An earlier version of this article stated that Wee was in a Bangkok hospital. This is incorrect. She was in a hospital in Singapore.

ALSO READ: 'Don't end up sick overseas like we did': Singaporean waited 1.5 hours to get to Seoul hospital

chingshijie@asiaone.com