Salmonellosis and Food-Borne Poisoning Essay

Introduction

Recently, there has been an increase in emergency hospital admissions with food-borne poisoning. Salmonellosis has been identified as the critical factor behind the rise in the food-borne poisoning outbreak as it is diagnosed in the majority of cases. Salmonellosis is a serious infectious disease, which is caused by Salmonella. It is a bacterium that can be found in various goods such as eggs, vegetables, and, most often, raw meat. These products often make their way into human organisms and may lead to multiple symptoms of food-borne poisoning, but mainly causes diarrheal illness. Salmonellosis is a severe infection responsible for almost 94 million illnesses and 155,000 deaths worldwide every year (Antunes et al., 2016). The main goal of this paper is to identify the causes of this outbreak and suggest possible guidelines for the community members and the local food establishments to prevent the bacteria from spreading even further. In addition, this research will also comment on the growing belief that reheating food can kill Salmonella from spreading.

Analyzing the Possible Causes of the Outbreak

Providing guidelines for preventing the further spread of the Salmonellosis outbreak requires establishing the possible causes of the infectious bacteria spread. In most cases, it is a local dining facility, which is responsible for the initial spread of the notorious food-borne poisoning. For example, a study was conducted about the 2018 outbreak of several Salmonella isolates in Massachusetts. After interviewing several patients who got diagnosed with the disease, the local Health Board was able to link the spread to the restaurant where all three reportedly dined. A further study showed that the restaurant employees ignored hygiene practices in cooking and serving the food (Vaughn et al., 2020). Therefore, neglect attitudes of local dining establishments towards basic hygiene practices can create plausible conditions for bacteria’s spread.

Sometimes, already contagious products appear on the shelves of supermarkets and in restaurants’ kitchens. This happens then Salmonella infects food back at the farm, which when supplies it to the market. A recent study of the 2013 Foster Farms outbreak showed that Salmonellosis epidemics coming from farms tend to be the most severe. They damage suppliers’ reputations and result in communication crises (Chung & Lee, 2016). Another outbreak, which resulted in 693 direct exposures, showed that agricultural workers are the most significant risk group whenever Salmonellosis starts its way from a farm (Montano, 2014). Overall, an outbreak coming from a farm is more severe than the one from a local restaurant since it impacts more people, and it is harder to find a responsible supplier.

Guidelines for Food Establishments

As it has been earlier identified restaurants, and other dining establishments often serve as a starting point for Salmonellosis spreads across the United States. Their negligence towards hygiene and product safety requirements must be prevented to stop the current food-borne poisoning outbreak and avoid its possible return in the future. Therefore, I have developed several safety guidelines that should be adhered to by local dining establishments:

• First and foremost, it is the basic hygiene practices, which often get ignored by staff members. Whenever an employee has already been exposed to the bacteria, a simple process of regularly washing their hands (preferably with a sanitizer) can stop Salmonella from spreading even further. To control this, every local food establishment should implement a system that involves various penalties such as heavy fines for members of staff who do not comply with hygiene and safety regulations.
• Second, since the infection can reach a food establishment from outside, every employee must be subject to a regular medical check such as a serological PCR-test, crucial in identifying Salmonellosis (Granjon et al., 2016). If an exposed staff member is to be found, the entire place should be closed for quarantine. The decision to reopen the diner must remain behind the local Health Board. This should help to mitigate the further spread of the infection by identifying it at its early stages.
• Checking supplies is another crucial factor in preventing this epidemic. There is still a chance that Salmonella isotopes could have originated back at farms and then found their way into local food establishments. Every place serving food must send the samples of the products they offer to local laboratories, which can perform corresponding tests and detect the bacteria before it gets to a consumer’s plate. This procedure is then to be repeated with new suppliers before further notice from the local Health Board.

Guidelines for the Community Members

Although Salmonellosis is not as fatal as other bacterial infections, its mortality rates are concerning. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, around 420 Americans die due to food-borne poisoning caused by Salmonella (2018). Furthermore, Salmonella is growing more resistant to the antibiotics used in treating its severe cases (Bakkeren et al., 2019). This brings the need to stop the spread of the outbreak before it grows in full-scale epidemics. Local residents should be aware of the current situation and well-informed on methods of identifying contagious food. In addition, the community members must be able to recognize the infection at its early stages to seek medical help in time. To do this, they must follow the simple instructions presented below:

• Salmonellosis has well-defined clinical symptoms of food-borne poisoning. Infected patients often experience diarrhea and stomach cramps (Qi et al., 2016). Anyone experiencing these symptoms after dining in any of the local food establishments must seek immediate medical advice and, then, admit themselves to an emergency room if necessary.
• Properly cooking raw meats is vital in avoiding potential exposure to Salmonella. Furthermore, all the leftovers should be kept refrigerated and reheated adequately before consumption. For example, there is direct evidence that microwaving fish fillets at 360 W and higher brings the bacteria’s pathogen levels below the detectable level (<1.00 log cfu/cm2) (Alakavuk et al., 2021). However, for the duration of the outbreak, it is best to avoid consuming meals cooked outside of the household, which can potentially contain the bacteria.
• Products containing meat are often to blame for the spread of Salmonella. Therefore, local residents should try to replace them with vegetables and fruits in their rations for the time of the outbreak to avoid unnecessary contact with the infected food.

Conclusion

To conclude, the spread of Salmonellosis is a serious issue, which should be thoroughly controlled and avoided if possible. To cut the infection, short local residents must be well-informed on the clinical symptoms of the disease. Even though it is often best to avoid consuming potentially infected products, basic safety guidelines should be followed in cooking food, which may have been exposed to the bacteria. In addition, local food establishments have to perform various sanitary checks of their supplies and employees regularly.

References

Alakavuk, D. Ü., Ulusoy, Ş., Coşansu, S., & Mol, S. (2021). Reduction of Salmonella Enteritidis in Fish by Microwave Cooking. Turkish Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences, 21(11), pp. 535-540.

Antunes, P., Mourão, J., Campos, J., & Peixe, L. (2016). Salmonellosis: the role of poultry meat. Clinical Microbiology and Infection, 22(2), pp. 110-121.

Bakkeren, E., Huisman, J. S., Fattinger, S. A., Hausmann, A., Furter, M., Egli, A.,… & Hardt, W. D. (2019). Salmonella persisters promote the spread of antibiotic resistance plasmids in the gut. Nature, 573(7773), pp. 276-280.

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2018). Foodborne germs and illnesses. Web.

Chung, S., & Lee, S. (2016). Crisis communication strategy on social media and the public’s cognitive and affective responses: A case of foster farms salmonella outbreak. Communication Research Reports, 33(4), pp. 341-348.

Granjon, E., Dichtel-Danjoy, M. L., Saba, E., Sabino, E., Campos de Oliveira, L., & Zrein, M. (2016). Development of a novel multiplex immunoassay multi-cruzi for the serological confirmation of Chagas disease. PLoS neglected tropical diseases, 10(4), e0004596.

Montano, D. (2014). Chemical and biological work-related risks across occupations in Europe: A review. Journal of Occupational Medicine and Toxicology, 9, pp. 28-41.

Qi, X. L., Wang, H. X., Bu, S. R., Xu, X. G., Wu, X. Y., & Lin, D. F. (2016). Incidence rates and clinical Symptoms of Salmonella, Vibrio parahaemolyticus, and Shigella infections in China, 1998–2013. The Journal of Infection in Developing Countries, 10(02), 127-133.

Vaughn, E. L., Vo, Q. T., Vostok, J., Stiles, T., Lang, A., Brown, C. M.,… & Madoff, L. (2020). Linking Epidemiology and Whole-Genome Sequencing to Investigate Salmonella Outbreak, Massachusetts, USA, 2018. Emerging infectious diseases, 26(7), p. 1538.