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Dangers from Food-borne Infections (Food Poisoning)
[A sample page]
Food poisoning can be very serious to certain people. The British Institute of Food Science estimates that one-quarter of the population, including children under five, pregnant women, elderly people, and cancer victims with impaired immune systems, is particularly susceptible to food-borne diseases.
Our chances of experiencing at least one episode of food poisoning are very high, especially while travelling overseas. Fortunately, most of these episodes are over in a few days and have no lasting consequences. On the other hand, in a small number of cases the results of food poisoning can lead to lifelong damage or even to loss of life. Some viral infections, such as hepatitis, can last a lifetime. This chapter covers only a few of the many food poisoning organisms.
Staphylococcus
Think about the sandwiches made for your child’s lunch box. The food- poisoning organism Staphylococcus aureus, grows particularly well in unrefrigerated mayonnaise or salad dressing. Baked ham, fish, chicken, potato and meat salads can also harbour this microorganism. Symptoms, ranging from simple diarrhoea and vomiting up to toxic shock syndrome, show up within a few hours. The illness is caused by heat-resistant toxin left after bacterial growth. The bacteria themselves do not colonise our bodies. Fortunately, death is very rare.
Poultry: Campylobacter
Campylobacter contamination of raw chicken is very common. Surveys suggest that all free-range and about half of battery-raised birds are “infected’, if that’s the word to use for a microbe normally found in chicken guts. The only sensible thing is to assume every piece of raw chicken has the potential to cause a severe gastrointestinal infection in humans. There is some evidence that campylobacter infection may also come from contaminated water, especially where cattle faeces are involved.
New Zealand has the highest reported rate of Campylobacter infection in the world, nearly 300 cases per 100,000 population in 2004, a rate three times higher than for Australia. In the United States, two-and- a-half million people a year suffer from campylobacteriosis and 13,000 are hospitalised. The U.S. government has, therefore, authorised radiation sterilisation of poultry, although it is not yet mandatory...