Medcare Forum » contamination

Cost of Food Pathogens by Rank

Kathleen Milazzo — Tue, 12 Apr 2011 15:13:10 +0000

Meat contains the food pathogens that cost us the most money which includes doctor and hospital care, lost work days and lasting health problems. This includes poultry, pork, beef among other products.

Researchers used data from the feds to link the parasites, bacteria, and viruses with the food that has the most of them the most often and then ranked them according what they would cost in money.

“We tend to think of food-borne disease as 24 hours of diarrhea and it’s over,” said J. Glenn Morris, the director of the Emerging Pathogens Institute at the University of Florida and one of the authors of the study. “What this shows is that there are diseases that have significant other manifestations, that result in complications, even death. And as a result, the public health burden is so much greater.”

Campylobacter costs the most at $1.3 billion a year. It’s found in poultry and makes 600,000 people sick. Costing about $1.2 billion a year is toxoplasma from pork which can be very dangerous for a pregnant women. Listeria found in luncheon meats costs $1.1 billion a year.

The pathogens that cost the most of which there are ten cost us $8.1 billion a year.

Salmonella was the bacterium that caused the most sickness costing $3 billion a year. Since it’s found in poultry, produce, eggs and many other foods the other researchers recommend that the U.S. Agriculture Department and the Food and Drug Administration join together to reduce contamination.

Overall it seems most of the problem comes from meat and meat products so it makes sense for the USDA to redefine some things.

New Concerns About BPA

Kathleen Milazzo — Tue, 16 Feb 2010 18:27:53 +0000

BPA if you remember was in the news and up for a lot of debate about its safety in plastic baby bottles. A couple of states have banned it’s use in baby bottles for children under 4 years old and more states seem to be following.

Manufactures of baby bottles have decided to steer clear of it and are advertising this on their labels to ease moms minds so they will buy their products made of plastic.

Now the experts are saying that they see in mice that there is a connection between BPA and children’s asthma.

We’ve got a tot in our home who is still on the bottle at bedtime and we do not purchase bottles with that chemical in it. However, you should know that BPA is also used in the lining of some cans. So if you use any kind of canned foods in the home you could still be exposing your young children to this dangerous chemical.

I don’t know if there is anything completely safe with the packaging of our food but the best advice I could give is to read, keep up on the latest news, and do your own research.

Vicks Recall

Kathleen Milazzo — Tue, 24 Nov 2009 14:51:15 +0000

We haven’t had a recall in awhile folks so here’s the latest. Vicks Nasal Spray has been recalled due to bacterial infection. Here are the countries, lot numbers, and product names. You can find these listed both on the bottles and boxes of the products.

9239028831	United States	Vicks Sinex Vapospray 12-Hour Decongestant Ultra Fine Mist, 15 ml, Nasal Spray
9224028832	United Kingdom	Vicks Sinex Micromist Aqueous Nasal Spray Solution, 15 ml
9224028833	Germany	Wick Sinex Schnupfenspray Dosiersystem, 15 ml

The company, Procter & Gamble says no one they know of has been made ill from any of the products listed above, but since bacteria was found at the factory in Germany, they want to head off possible problems.

Raw Cookie Dough Contamination

Kathleen Milazzo — Sat, 20 Jun 2009 18:33:52 +0000

Two people have gotten sick in New Hampshire from eating Nestle Cookie Dough. So far it concerns the Toll House Refrigerated Raw Cookie Dough and the fact that it might be contaminated with E. coli.

Cooking the cookie dough will kill the E. coli, however New Hampshire officials say that if you have this in your home you should just throw it out. They are concerned that the bacteria could be consumed or spread just by the handling of it with your hands and on the surfaces in your kitchen.

After a quickie goverment investigation, they found that there is good reason to think that the illnesses of 65 people in 29 states is linked to the raw cookie dough.

I think a good home policy for all of us is “When in doubt, throw it out”.

Pistachio’s May Be Contaminatied With Salmonella

Kathleen Milazzo — Tue, 31 Mar 2009 15:57:31 +0000

A pistachio processor issued a recall due to potential contamination. A few people have become ill and the FDA is with the California Department of Public Health investigating the matter. The name of the company is Setton Pistachio of Terra Bella Inc.

The company says this has nothing to do with the contamination of peanuts we’ve had, and involves about 1 million pounds of the nuts. Also since pistachio’s are used in a lot of other products, there could be more foods recalled because of this. A small amount that was shipped out in 2008 was found to be positive , so who knows how much more is contaminated that wasn’t tested. It’s highly suggested that you avoid all pistachio’s for now as well as any other food products that may have them as an ingredient.

More Trouble with Nuts?

Kathleen Milazzo — Sat, 31 Jan 2009 22:59:44 +0000

My husband went to a chain drugstore and brought back the house brand of peanuts. It was already open and he was enjoying them and offered me some. I reminded him about the contamination with the peanuts and how do we know these are safe but he never gives in to that sort of thing so he just shrugged his shoulders and continued to eat them. I however being of poor health can’t afford to get sick so I passed on the offer.

I did however want to read the fine print on the back to see where they were made. It only had the store name, but what got me to thinking about it again was that it said on the bag that the machinery that made the peanuts also made wheat, soy, and dairy products.

I find this scary because if they don’t thoroughly clean the machine with bleach it could be passing the contamination onto various other types of food. A lot of food.

Where does it end, and who can we trust to manufacture food products that are safe for our families? What companies are ran tightly by folks who care more about public safety than personal profit? The answer is my friends, I don’t know, I just don’t know.

Heparin Contamination Not Accidental

Kathleen Milazzo — Thu, 01 May 2008 02:47:31 +0000

It has become clear that the contamination of the drug Heparin was deliberate. It is also clear that our friends in China where the contamination took place, are not going to allow us to get to the bottom of exactly who did it. China says that they want the right to inspect our drug factories if we expect to be able to inspect theirs. Huh? The Chinese are way out of line on this and as a country whose people are supposed to be so honorable, seem to throw out that honor when money is involved. You see while heparin costs $900 a pound, the contaminant costs only$9.00 a pound. You do the math.

The US is not the only country that was affected by this contamination so I am anxious to see what action other countries will take against this company in China. I also wonder how far the Chinese government will go to protect guilty parties.