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*** g94 2/22 p. 29 Watching the World *** Killer in the Food Every year some 80 million persons in the United States are victims of food poisoning, according to a Tufts University newsletter. “The problem often goes unrecognized because many of its symptoms—chills, fever, nausea, cramps, diarrhea, vomiting—can resemble those of the flu,” noted the newsletter. In some cases these foodborne diseases prove fatal. In the United States alone, about 9,000 people die each year as a result of food poisoning. The Tufts University Diet & Nutrition Letter states that the “Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have estimated that 85 percent of all foodborne illness could be avoided if people took the proper precautionary steps in their own homes.” Among the precautions listed were refrigerating all foods within two hours of cooking and rinsing all vegetables and fruits before eating them. |
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*** g99 5/22 p. 29 Watching the World *** Overeating Increases Risk of Food Poisoning The risk of getting sick from eating contaminated food is greater if one overeats, according to Dr. Adolfo Chávez, of the Salvador Zubirán National Institute of Nutrition in Mexico. He says that traces of bacteria in the food we eat are normally destroyed by the gastric juices in our stomachs. But after an eating binge, the extra volume of food in the stomach overrides gastric acidity, reducing the stomach’s ability to kill bacteria. Dr. Chávez told Awake!: “If a person eats 15 tacos and one of them is contaminated, the person will probably get contaminated because of the amount eaten. If that person eats just one taco that is contaminated, there may be no problem.” |
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*** g95 11/22 pp. 19-22 Protect Yourself From Food-Borne Illness *** Protect Yourself From Food-Borne Illness “I COULDN’T even leave the bathroom for 12 hours,” says Becky. “The cramps were incredible. And I became so dehydrated, I had to get IV fluids in the emergency room. It was two or three weeks before I felt normal again.” Becky was afflicted with food poisoning, a food-borne illness. Like most victims, she survived. But the memory of her ordeal remains vivid. “I never realized food poisoning could make you feel so sick,” she says. Experiences such as this, and worse, are disturbingly common. Dozens of bacteria, viruses, parasites, and protozoans threaten to poison our food. And while some types of food-borne illness have decreased in industrialized countries in recent years, World Health magazine reports that “salmonellosis and some others have defied all efforts to control them.” The incidence of food poisoning is difficult to track because most cases go unreported. Dr. Jane Koehler of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control says: “What we know about is just the tip of the iceberg.” What causes food-borne illness? You may be surprised to learn that the problem often begins long before food reaches the market. Farming an Epidemic Modern farming techniques all but guarantee rapid transmission of pathogens among livestock. In the United States beef industry, for example, calves from approximately 900,000 farms are merged into fewer than a hundred plants for slaughtering. Such intermixing can cause one farm’s contaminant to start an epidemic. Furthermore, Dr. Edward L. Menning, director of the National Association of Federal Veterinarians, claims that in the United States, “thirty percent or more of the animal feed is contaminated with pathogens.” Sometimes animal feed is fortified with slaughterhouse waste to provide extra protein—a practice that can spread salmonella and other germs. When animals are given low doses of antibiotics to enhance growth, germs can be rendered drug-resistant. “A good example is salmonella, which is becoming more resistant to antibiotics,” says Dr. Robert V. Tauxe of the Centers for Disease Control. “We think it is because antibiotics are being given to food animals. This may be the case for other bacteria as well.” In the United States, only a small percentage of chickens have salmonella in their intestines when leaving the farm for the slaughterhouse, but microbiologist Nelson Cox claims that “this explodes to twenty to twenty-five percent in transport.” Jammed into small coops, chickens can easily become infected. High-speed slaughter and processing increases the risk. “At the end of the line the birds are no cleaner than if they had been dipped in a dirty toilet,” claims microbiologist Gerald Kuester. “They may have been washed, but the germs are still there.” Likewise, large-scale meat processing can be dangerous. “Food batches in modern processing plants are so large that one or two infected lots of incoming food can contaminate tons of the finished product,” says The Encyclopedia of Common Diseases. A single piece of tainted beef, for example, can contaminate every hamburger emerging from that same grinder. Furthermore, food prepared at a central location and then shipped to stores and restaurants may be susceptible to contamination if the proper temperature is not maintained during shipment. How much food arriving at the marketplace is a potential threat? “At least 60 percent of everything in the retail case,” claims Dr. Menning, speaking of the United States. But you can take steps to protect yourself from food-borne illness, for FDA Consumer magazine notes that “30 percent of all such illness results from unsafe handling of food at home.” What precautions can you take? Before You Buy It . . . Read the label. What are the ingredients? Be cautious if raw eggs have been used, such as in salad dressings or in mayonnaise. Milk and cheese should be labeled “pasteurized.” Notice the “sell by” or “use by” date warnings. Do not assume that products claiming to be all natural are guaranteed to be safe; they may expose you to dangers that additives were designed to prevent. Scrutinize the food and its packaging. If food doesn’t look fresh, don’t buy it. As for fish, whole fish should have clear eyes, red gills, and unmarred, firm flesh, and fillets and steaks should be bright and shiny, without a strong and unpleasant odor. Fish should be either on a bed of ice or in a refrigerated case. Precooked fish displayed alongside raw fish can become cross-contaminated. Furthermore, leaking, bulging, or otherwise damaged cans and jars can lead to botulism—a rare but sometimes fatal poisoning that attacks the central nervous system.
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