Food Poisoning Essay

What is Food Poisoning?

Food poisoning results when you eat food contaminated with bacteria or other pathogens such as parasites or viruses. Your symptoms may range from upset stomach to diarrhea, fever, vomiting, abdominal cramps and dehydration. Most such infections go undiagnosed and unreported.

But the Center for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that each year about 76 million people in the United States become ill from pathogens in food, and about 5,000 of them die.

Over 55% of such cases are caused by improper cooking and storage of foods, and 24% by poor hygiene, such as not washing your hands while preparing food. Only 3% of cases are from unsafe food sources. Keeping your hands clean while working with food is the single

This form of food poisoning is very rare, but can be life-threatening. It may result from eating improperly processed, low-acid foods such as green beans, mushrooms, spinach, olives and beef or fish. Improper home canning methods often account for botulism cases. Improperly processed commercial products can also cause this serious disorder.

To avoid botulism, don't even taste canned food that is soft, deteriorating, fermenting or doesn't smell right. It isn't worth a life-threatening illness. When in doubt, throw it out.

Infant botulism is more common in spring and summer, and is rare in winter. Infants younger than one year of age are at the highest risk. Symptoms include muscle weakness, a weak cry, difficulty in feeding, constipation, head lag, increased heart rate and a decreased gag reflex. A baby with botulism is described as a "floppy baby," as the infant will have weak muscles, especially in the arms, legs and neck.

Infant botulism has been associated with eating honey. The Center for Disease Control suggests that honey should not be given to infants under six months old, and the Honey Industry Council extends the safety limit to one year. Honey is not an essential food for infants, and should never be given to