Disturbing reason mayonnaise in man's burger 'started moving'

A New Zealand man's reaction to a stomach-churning find in his burger has surprised onlookers, many of whom suggested he sue the restaurant he ordered the meal from. Disturbing video of the discovery shows a wriggling white organism with the caption, "I thought it was mayo until it started moving".

The TikToker asked fellow users for help identifying the creature, with the most common answer being a tapeworm. Two veterinarians who viewed the video confirmed these suspicions to Yahoo News Australia, saying it appears to be a segment of tapeworm, although how the parasite came to be in a burger is unclear.

'Kiwis don't sue'

Thousands of commenters urged the man to name the eatery in question and take legal action over the find, saying he'd be entitled to a "substantial amount of settlement money", but to the surprise of many he shut down their suggestions.

In follow-up comments, the man said while he has sought a response from the restaurant, he wouldn't publicly name it because his friend works there and he doesn't want to see it shut down. He also laughed off the idea of suing, telling American viewers Kiwis don't sue over such incidents. "New Zealand's not like America haha. We just try resolve not go for millions over something like this," he wrote.

"Are you stupid? Go after the millions," one shocked viewer responded. "That's the dumbest thing I've heard today. Why waste a chance to get money from a company that gave you a PARASITE?" added a second. "Tapeworms can kill you. I'd be getting paid," replied a third.

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What are tapeworms?

According to HealthDirect, tapeworms are parasites that live in the intestines of animals, and have a head, neck and many body segments. They lay eggs, which hatch into larvae before maturing into adult tapeworms.

Humans can become infected by eating or drinking tapeworm eggs or larvae in contaminated meat or water, which break through the wall of the intestines and can live there for many years as they grow.

In rare cases, tapeworm can cause life-threatening damage, but often there will be no symptoms. If a person does experience symptoms, they can include:

• Abdominal pain

• Nausea

• Weakness or tiredness

• Diarrhea

• Loss of appetite

• Vitamin and mineral deficiencies

• Pieces of worm in faeces

Diagnosing a tapeworm infection is done by a stool sample and sometimes a blood test, with a course of medicine being the usual treatment.

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