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| Slugs are not meant to be eaten |
A few days after swallowing the slug, Sam started getting pains in his legs. He was vomiting and he complained of dizziness. His family took him to the hospital where he only got worse and worse. After doctors ran tests, it turned out that it wasn't just any old slug that he swallowed.
This one had a parasite called rat lungworm which the slug probably picked up from eating rat droppings.
Rat lungworm infection can progress into bacterial meningitis, causing symptoms like dizziness, headaches, nausea, weird sensations in arms and legs, brain damage and, eventually, paralysis.
Within a few hours after arriving at the hospital, Sam lapsed into a coma. He was placed in a nursing home because he required 24/7 care. While in a coma, Australia's National Disability Insurance cut off his benefits.
His family took his story to the media and they requested donations to pay for his care. The donations trickled in. When Sam finally woke up from coma 420 days later, he learned his career aspirations to be a rugby player were crushed because he was permanently paralyzed from the neck down.
After much media publicity, the Australian government reversed their decision but they only approved him for half the money of what his previous benefit had been.
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| On the left, Sam Ballard at present day. On the right, Sam Ballard during his heyday. |
After 8 years of dealing with seizures, infections, paralysis, pressure sores and other symptoms, Sam Ballard died on November 2, 2018, at age 28.
Your takeaways from this story:
1 - Teach your children to use common sense when accepting a dare.
2 - If the dare calls for eating something that isn't on your regular diet, don't do it.
3 - Never eat, swallow or handle anything that could be carrying a parasite - like slugs, snails, land crabs, freshwater shrimp, or frogs to name a few.
4 - Don't eat or handle vegetables that are grown in a slug's environment.
5 - Wash your hands often if you come into contact with any of the above mentioned.
6 - Inspect your eating utensils and make sure they are thoroughly clean when they have been in contact with frogs, snails, slugs, etc.
Sources:
https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/2018/11/05/young-rugby-player-ate-slug-mates-dare-now-hes-dead
The boys who dared Sam
https://www.mamamia.com.au/sam-ballards-life-changed-after-slug/
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