FOOD BORNE ILLNESS: Food borne illness generally refers to illnesses caused by micro-organisms consumed by eating any type of food. When people complain of "food poisoning," they may actually have been exposed to the micro-organisms that cause food borne illness.
Microbes, bacteria, and pathogens are other terms used to describe the micro-organisms that cause food borne illness. Food borne illness is the greatest food safety threat. Its effects can range from relatively minor discomfort to more serious symptoms and manifestations such as fever, diarrhea, vomiting, dehydration, and even death.
The acute illnesses posed by food borne organisms, coupled with the ease and swiftness with which they develop, present food safety challenges for the entire food distribution chain.
This includes producers, packers and shippers, processors and manufacturers, retailers, and consumers.
Food borne illness comes from bacteria, viruses, and other micro-organisms that are found widely throughout nature and the environment. An average person carries more than 150 kinds of bacteria in and on the surface of the body. Generally, the bacteria can spread easily and rapidly, requiring just food, moisture, a favorable temperature and time to multiply. Animal protein foods - meat, eggs, poultry, and fish - are common hosts of food borne bacteria.
However, bacteria can be readily spread from a non-food item - such as a knife, crate, cutting board, or human hands - to food. Contaminants causing food borne illness can originate within the food (meat or fish), on the food (egg shell or produce), from unsafe water, or from human or animal feces.
Favourite bacteria hiding places include sponges, dish towels, aprons, cutting boards, sinks, counter tops, and wooden utensils.
There are five basic categories of food borne illness agents or contaminants: bacteria, viruses, parasites, food toxins, and unknown sources.
Food borne illnesses occur when bacteria or other agents cause either infections or poisonings. Infections result from the ingestion of significant quantities of contaminants that have reproduced in the food itself, or in the small intestines once consumed. It is important to emphasise that since there are literally thousands of different strains of bacteria that can cause food borne disease, it is difficult to generalise their characteristics and effects.
For instance, thorough cooking destroys most bacterial cells, yet some can survive boiling.
Additionally, most micro-organisms prefer warm environments, but some, such as Listeria monocytogenes, will survive and even grow at refrigerator temperatures. Most micro-organisms do not survive in food with relatively high salt concentrations, but some will.
MAJOR FOOD BORNE ILLNESSES: Six types of bacteria are responsible for most of the reported cases of food borne illness:
BOTULISM: Cases of botulism are rare but very dangerous. They are usually associated with low-acid canned foods, such as meats and vegetables that have been improperly processed or stored.
CLOSTRIDIUM PERFRINGENS: These are bacteria present throughout the environment, growing where there is little or no oxygen. Foods in buffets and casseroles, stews and gravies must be maintained at 140 degrees Fahrenheit or above or they will be particularly susceptible to the growth of this bacterium.
E COLI: E. coli is a bacterium that normally lives in the intestines of people and animals. Most types of E. coli are harmless. However, one type, E. coli O157:H7, can produce a deadly toxin and can cause illness. Sources include meat, especially undercooked, raw milk, and produce.
LISTERIA MONOCYTOGENES: These bacteria are found in milk, raw vegetables, soft or semi-soft cheese, meat, and poultry. Listeria can grow slowly at refrigerated temperatures.
SALMONELLA SPECIES: Salmonellosis is the most common bacterial food borne illness. The Salmonella family includes about 2,000 different strains of bacteria, but only ten strains cause most of the reported Salmonella infections. Salmonella can be found in a variety of sources, but it is most frequently associated with poultry, meat, eggs, and unpasteurized milk.
STAPHYLOCOCCUS: These bacteria are carried by humans in the nose and throat areas and in skin infections. Ordinary cooking does not kill the toxin produced by Staphylococcus aureas bacteria, which is why personal hygiene is so important in the kitchen.
HOW TO PREVENT ILLNESS: Public health experts believe unsanitary food preparation practices are a major contributors to outbreaks. Errors made in shopping, transporting, storing, preparing, or serving food can enable bacteria to survive and grow. If foods are prepared a day or more before consumption and food handlers are careless, the chance of illness can increase because bacteria have more time to multiply.
FOLLOWING ARE 12 FOOD-HANDLING TIPS TO HELP PREVENT FOOD BORNE ILLNESS:
1. Don't buy cans or glass jars with dents, cracks, or bulging lids.
2. Never eat raw meat, poultry, seafood, or eggs.
3. Cook raw meat, poultry, seafood, or eggs thoroughly-to at least 165 degrees Fahrenheit-to kill any bacteria present.
4. Thoroughly reheat leftovers.
5. Promptly refrigerate cooked meat and poultry in small, shallow containers. Remove stuffing from chicken and refrigerate separately.
6. Refrigerate perishable food as soon as you get home from the market.
7. Store canned goods in a cool dry place for use within a year. Never put them above the stove or in a damp area.
8. Don't thaw food on the counter; bacteria grow quickly at room temperature. Thaw food in the refrigerator or in the microwave just before cooking.
9. Keep work areas clean. Wash hands, utensils, and cutting boards in hot soapy water before preparing food and after handling raw meat or poultry.
10. Use a plastic or other non-porous cutting board. Wash cutting boards in the dishwasher or in hot soapy water after use.
11. Keep pets away from food, cooking and eating surfaces, and equipment. Don't count on cooking or refrigeration to "fix" a mistake.
12. Don't take chances - if you suspect there's a problem, throw the food out.
Likewise, the following 'fight back' safe food handling tips are provided to help consumers prevent food borne illness in the home.
CLEAN: Wash hands and surfaces often
SEPARATE: Don't cross-contaminate
COOK: Cook to proper temperatures
CHILL: Refrigerate leftovers promptly
SYMPTOMS: Symptoms of food borne illness include severe abdominal cramps, diarrhea (often bloody), nausea, vomiting, dry mouth, double vision, difficulty swallowing, and flu-like symptoms (fever, chills, headache, and backache). Symptoms may appear from six hours up to ten days after exposure.
Since food borne illness can potentially cause severe illness or death, people who suspect they have become sick from food should see a doctor.
WHO'S AT RISK? Anyone can be afflicted with food borne illness. However, certain segments of the population face greater risks and have a higher incidence of food borne illness.
THEY ARE OLDER PEOPLE: Ability to fight food borne disease lessens with age. As people grow older, their stomachs produce less acid (which destroys bacteria) and their kidneys are less able to filter bacteria from the blood. The elderly are the largest high-risk group.
PREGNANT WOMEN, INFANTS, AND CHILDREN: Some illnesses that an expectant mother contracts can affect her fetus. Fetuses do not have a fully developed immune system, and therefore cannot effectively fight bacteria. Food borne illness can cause spontaneous abortions and stillbirths. In addition, food borne illness can lead to urinary tract infections, meningitis, and kidney failure in infants and children.
PEOPLE WITH WEAKENED IMMUNE SYSTEMS: People with diabetes, HIV/AIDS, cancer, or on chemotherapy have weakened immune systems and are more vulnerable to food borne illness. For people suffering from a chronic illness, food borne illness can be especially difficult to treat, may recur and may interfere with treatment for other illnesses.
CAPACITY BUILDING: The quest for the safest food supply in the world continues. Food processors and government regulators are working together to prevent food borne illness.
These partnerships, through the new HACCP regulations and expanded research, surveillance, detection, and education programs will strengthen mechanisms to identify, control, or respond to outbreaks of food borne illness.
As scientific knowledge and technological applications expand, we can expect to see a wider variety of useful methods used as safety tools to detect the presence of micro-organisms in food.
These tools are an important part of strategies to enhance food safety. They will enable processors and producers to react quickly to the presence of harmful bacteria or destroy it before causing an outbreak of food borne illness.
Most countries continue to expand the capacity to protect their populations from exposure to unacceptable level of micro-organisms and chemicals in food.
Public awareness of the risks involved is relatively high in developed countries, and many governments have made clear commitments to improve food safety.
Developing countries have many competing priorities in their health agendas, and food safety has not, in the past, been recognised as a vital public health issue.
However, it is becoming clear that food borne disease has a significant impact on health. The globalisation of the food trade and the development of international food standards have also raised awareness of food safety in developing countries.
Placing food safety on the political agenda is the first vital step in reducing food borne illness.
Many developing countries are poorly equipped to respond to existing and emerging food safety problems.
They lack the technical and financial resources, an effective institutional framework, trained manpower and sufficient information about the hazards and risks involved. A WHO survey in 1989 of national capacities for effective protection against adverse environmental factors, including a clean water supply, basic sanitation and food safety, showed that less than 10% of the 136 developing countries had adequate capacities.
Few of these countries had adequate legislation, standards or regulations or the capacity to enforce and assess them. Most lacked adequately skilled staff, effective mechanisms for inter-sect oral actions and adequate financing and strategies to overcome these limitations.
Therefore, while the identification of hazards and risk in food is vital in strategic planning, the capacity to assess and manage those risks is fundamentally lacking in many developing countries including Pakistan.
The government must take appropriate measures and needed steps to introduce the required legislation to regulate all segments of the food industry.
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