In December 1997, FDA approved the use of irradiation for the decontamination of red meat. This approval came only four months after 25 million pounds of Hudson Foods hamburger was recalled due to contamination by potentially deadly bacteria. Despite the fears raised by anti-irradiation activists, scientists and the FDA assure the public that this process neither makes food radioactive nor toxic.
It is estimated that there are between 6.5 and 81 million cases of foodborne illness in the United States every year, causing approximately 9000 deaths. Scientists believe this number is grossly underestimated, because foodborne illnesses often go undiagnosed. Millions of cases are never reported because many people assume they have a “24-hour bug”. But, in some cases, symptoms are much more serious and can spawn dreadful consequences. Recent examples of the dangers of foodborne illnesses include:
Undercooked hamburgers from the fast food restaurant chain Jack-in-the-Box contaminated with E-coli O157:H7 left four children dead.
Guatemalan raspberries carried the parasite cyclospora to 1,500 people; 22 required hospitalization.
Hepatitis A-tainted Mexican strawberries that found their way into the school lunch program.
In recent years, scientists have traced nearly 80% of all E-coli bacterial contamination in the US to hamburger alone.Continue Reading The growing problem of food poisoning: Is irradiation the answer?
FDA Bans Use Of Antibiotic In Poultry
Anna Wilde Mathews and Zachary Goldfarb of the Wall Street Journal report that fearing that the animal drug Baytril — used to fight infections in chickens — could pose health risks to humans, the Food and Drug Administration decided to ban its use in poultry.
The decision yesterday to restrict the Bayer AG antibiotic, which takes effect Sept. 12, marks the first time that the agency has ended the use of an animal drug because of worries that it could lead to antibiotic-resistant pathogens in humans.
“We made the determination that the drug was not safe,” said Stephen Sundlof, director of the FDA’s Center for Veterinary Medicine, which first asked for the drug’s removal in 2000. The FDA’s top official “has confirmed our original decision.” The FDA’s standard is that food from animals that have taken a particular drug must carry a “reasonable certainty of no harm,” and the agency didn’t feel that poultry treated with Baytril met that standard, he said.Continue Reading FDA Bans Use Of Antibiotic In Poultry
Food poisoning causes panic in childcare centre
A dead lizard found in food created panic among the 250-odd children of a childcare centre at Ambattur. These children, who were undergoing free tuitions at the centre, are usually served dinner after their classes.
On Tuesday night, they were served “sambar” rice when a lizard was found in the food served to one of
Russian official: at least 17 dead this year from poisonous mushrooms
Per the CP News Wire in Moscow, Chief state epidemiologist Gennady Onishchenko was cited as telling a news conference Tuesday that at least 17 people have died in Russia from eating poisonous mushrooms so far this year, fewer than during similar periods over the previous four years, and that authorities have recorded 179 cases of
Boy Scouts fall ill at N.H. camp
Sun staff writer Robert Mills reports that New Hampshire public-health officials were investigating what caused about 60 Boy Scouts at a local Boy Scout camp, Wah-Tut-Ca Reservation — where several local troops may have been staying — to become ill yesterday.
According to information on the Web site for the Yankee-Clipper Council of the Boy Scouts of America, which local troops are part of, as many as five local troops from Billerica, Dracut, Tewksbury, Westford and Wilmington were scheduled to be at the camp this week.Continue Reading Boy Scouts fall ill at N.H. camp
Sickness hits 60 campers in Northwood
Democrat Staff Writer Amanda Dumond reports that state health officials are investigating what caused 60 Boy Scout campers and their leaders to get sick on Monday morning.
Sixty Scouts of 200 attending the camp at the Wah-Tut-Ca Scout Reservation off Blake Hill Road came down with diarrhea and stomach cramps, as did six leaders at the camp. Some of the people also were vomiting, said Dr. Jose Montero, state epidemiologist, but most symptoms were mild.
No one was hospitalized, and most of the afflicted were feeling better by Monday afternoon and were able to participate in camp activities. As of Monday night, no new cases were reported.Continue Reading Sickness hits 60 campers in Northwood
Wash vegetables and fruit to reduce food poisoning
Heather McAvoy of The Daily Herald reports that while vegetables and fruit are well known for their powerful health-protecting benefits, what is less well known is that these valuable foods can also be sources of food poisoning when they are not properly handled.
Health officials recommend eating at least five servings of a variety of vegetables and fruit each day. These foods provide a wide range of plant compounds, known as phytochemicals. Phytochemicals have been shown to protect against many diseases, including heart disease, cancer and stroke.
Food poisoning bacteria can contaminate vegetables and fruit. These bacteria can come from soil, water and/or handling during harvest and transport. Viruses and pesticide residues can also be present.Continue Reading Wash vegetables and fruit to reduce food poisoning
Finding Foodborne Illness Outbreaks Sooner, Faster
If 25 people eating at a single banquet hall became sick and needed hospitalization, determining the cause could be as easy as checking the dinner menu. But if those same people were scattered across 20 states and became ill after eating food processed at a single site, identifying the link could sometimes be impossible.
Hence the development of FoodNet, a program implemented by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to collect and analyze cases of foodborne illness, such as salmonella and E. coli outbreaks.
Since 1996, FoodNet has led to a 42 percent decrease in salmonella infections and 40 percent reduction in Listeria infections reported Robert Tauxe, a foodborne disease expert with the CDC, speaking last week at the Institute of Food Technologists annual meeting in New Orleans.Continue Reading Finding Foodborne Illness Outbreaks Sooner, Faster
Boy Scouts Stricken With Apparent Food Poisoning
The New Hampshire Health Department is trying to figure out what made dozens of Boy Scout campers sick on Monday. Sixty campers out of 200 at the Boy Scout camp in Northwood came down with diarrhea and stomach cramps Monday morning. Health officials said that the children were feeling better by the afternoon.
The Health
Raw deal
A story from this weekend’s Globe and Mail, by Beppi Crosariol:
Growing up Italian, I learned to appreciate many undervalued things: family, naps in the afternoon, impractical shoes, guilt.
I also learned to love veal. Consuming the flesh of infant calves may arouse the scorn of Pamela Anderson and her ilk, but served up as melt-in-the-mouth scallopine or ossobuco Milanese, the delicate white meat beats kelp juice any day.
Thus when a two-inch-thick boneless chop arrived before me at an acclaimed Asian-fusion restaurant in Toronto, I was stoked. Gargantuan steak knife in hand, I began to carve away at its caramelized exterior in anticipation of that ultimate in bovine tenderness.
Then it happened: a bloody mess. My serrated Excalibur turned out to be no match for the distressingly undercooked flesh below. Soon I was hacking away at its rubbery middle like Jack Nicholson in the role of some nuthouse inmate.Continue Reading Raw deal