FDA: Evergreen Produce Alfalfa Sprouts Likely To Contain Salmonella

Health officials have warned people not to consume the Evergreen Produce brand of alfalfa sprouts or spicy sprouts. In case you have them, discard them immediately. Health regulators are investigating a possible link to the salmonella outbreak in the 5 U.S. states of Montana, Idaho, North Dakota, New Jersey and Washington.

Symptoms include fever, chills, abdominal cramps and diarrhea 12 – 72 hours after infection. Generally, the illness lasts 4-7 days, and the majority of people recover without any treatment. However, some people may need hospitalization from acute diarrhea.

Sprouts – alfalfa, bean and radish – are more prone to salmonella-contamination compared with other veggies due to the warm, humid conditions needed for them to thrive.

Infants, the elderly, pregnant women and people with impaired immune systems are at increased risk of contracting salmonella infection. Health authorities advise against eating any kind of raw sprouts.

The Department of Health has urged markets, restaurants & delicatessens to clear their shelves of all these products.

People who believe they may have fallen ill from consuming contaminated sprouts must seek medical attention.

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Copper Utensils Destroy E.coli Strains (bluebell25.wordpress.com) 

Copper Utensils Destroy E.coli Strains

A study by the University of Southampton reveals that cooking in copper vessels helps prevent cross contamination of food items with Escherichia coli bacteria.

According to the WHO, the E. coli outbreak in Germany includes a new E. coli strain that’s never occurred before.

Scientists claim that they have completed analysis on the new E. coli strains and findings reveal that these new strains have been killed on a copper surface.

The study demonstrated that the presence of ten million E. coli bacteria on a dry copper surface had been removed in under 10 mins. It’s expected that complete removal of bacteria on a wet copper surface can be achieved within 45 min.

Hand wash and food preparation are the major areas of concern because of cross-contamination. The use of copper utensils in food preparation areas would destroy E-coli bugs that get deposited on work surfaces. This reduces cross-contamination risk & checks the spread of infection.

The rod-shaped E.coli bacteria are commonly present in the lower intestines of humans & warm blooded animals and can trigger life threatening infections.

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Japanese Restaurant Blames Australian Beef for E. coli

Australian beef is coming under the scanner after a popular Japanese diner claimed it was to be held responsible for an E.coli outbreak in Japan. 

However, the Australian meat industry maintains it might have been lettuce, beef or pork from any other country. 

After eating at Gyukaka – a popular Korean-themed barbecue restaurant chain, 20 people have taken ill  in Toyama prefecture; 15 of them were found to be infected with the deadly O157 strain of E.coli.  

REINS International, the operators of this restaurant chain, said they believed the source of the infections to be imported Aussie beef. 

The company stated it had changed its Aussie beef supplier, but public health authorities did not find any E. coli bacteria at the affected restaurant.  

Nearly 40% of Australia’s beef exports are sent to Japan.

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Cucumbers Loaded With E-coli Bacteria

 

 

Spanish cucumbers are believed to responsible for the lethal E coli outbreak in Germany, with cases also being reported from Britain, France, Sweden, Denmark and the Netherlands.

The E-coli outbreak is linked to a batch of contaminated cucumbers believed to have been imported from Spain, although Spanish officials have rebutted the charges and said there’s no evidence of this.

The German officials have identified the pathogen as HUS - hemolytic-uremic syndrome, a dangerous complication of a kind of E coli called Shiga toxin-producing E. coli (STEC).

HUS affects the kidneys, blood and in more serious cases, the infection attacks the nervous system & can be particularly severe for children and older people.

Vegetable such as cucumbers, raw tomatoes and lettuce are often the sources of this deadly E.coli poisoning. Symptoms include fever, diarrhea containing blood, vomiting and abdominal cramps.

The outbreak has led to trade being disrupted across Europe, causing Spanish farmers to abandon millions of dollars’ worth of cucumbers due to cancelled orders, and tensions between Germany and Spain have flared.

Across Europe, countries have started removing Spanish cucumbers from their shelves.

Meanwhile Spain was contemplating taking action over its cucumbers being held responsible for the outbreak.

Horticultural farms in Andalusia, Spain, have been making losses of €7-8m per day since German officials linked the E-coli bacteria to Spanish grown cucumbers.

German authorities have issued warnings to consumers to pass up eating tomatoes, cucumbers and lettuces and have ordered the removal of some products from store shelves.

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Prostate Biopsies May Cause Potentially Lethal Infections

There is an increasing risk that  prostate biopsies may lead to infection.

Needle biopsies performed after elevated PSA readings, are increasingly leading to infection by antibiotic-resistant bacteria like E. coli.

Among the scores of males screened for prostate cancer every year, doctors are discovering an alarming trend: A growing number of people are falling sick from potentially deadly, drug-resistant infections.

Recent studies have revealed that people undergoing regular needle biopsy tests are falling critically ill & dying from lethal bacterial infections.

The needle used in performing a prostate biopsy is inserted through the rectum en route to the prostate. Now, this is repeatedly done during a single procedure, creating the danger that bacteria present in the bowel moves into the prostate, the bladder & beyond.

There is a possibility that 2 out of every 100 males undergoing biopsies develop sepsis, a deadly blood infection.

The findings present more evidence that PSA & follow-up tests aren’t necessarily benign.