I’ve eaten all different kinds of food all over the world, but it was in my very own kitchen with seafood bought locally that I succumbed to food poisoning. And, unfortunately, I brought my roommate on the journey with me.

My parents heard great things from colleagues about an Asian market in nearby Levittown, known for the produce and seafood. They called me late one Saturday morning and asked if I wanted anything. I immediately responded with mahi mahi and sea bass, my two favorite types of fish.

I prepared the mahi one night for my roommate and myself. My simple preparation included white wine, lemon juice and garlic sautéed. I served it with rice and edamame. It was a simple, enjoyable meal. As I was washing dishes, Kate asked me if I thought she was having an allergic reaction. I looked at her, and she was so red it verged on purple. We called, in this order, her mom, her sister and my mom — all nurses — and asked what we should do. When she started to have heart palpitations, we decided to head to the emergency room.

After being rushed to a room and hooked up to an IV, Kate’s symptoms calmed. She returned to a more normal shade, and the nurses and doctors treated her for an allergic reaction. Then I started to display symptoms —turning red, itchy from head to toe. They checked me in as well and began to look into the symptoms more. I ate mahi before, and it seemed odd we were both having allergic reactions.

The doctor diagnosed us with scombroid poisoning, found in specific types of fish such as mahi, tuna and mackerel. It’s a bacteria that forms in the tissue of these fish when they are improperly stored after being caught. The bacteria doesn’t cook off, and it leaves no discernible odor or taste. There was no way to detect we were eating bad fish.

We spent the next day recovering from our night hooked up to IVs in the emergency room and letting the poison work its way through our system. While it hasn’t scared me off of fish, it’s definitely made me think more closely about what I’m eating all around the world.

— Kim Krol, managing editor