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June 8th 1998 the Centers for Disease Control released a story that people in 12 midwestern and northeastern states (United States) have gotten diarrhea, vomiting, abdominal cramps, and nausea from eating cereal. Two hundred and eleven people have been infected thus far with 47 people needing to be placed in the hospital. No deaths have been reported.
Even cereal can be infected with organisms that can cause us problems. Unfortunately, breakfast cereals aren't usually cooked before you eat them in your bowl of milk in the morning. The whole idea is that they are convenient and do not require preparation to be eaten. This is one very good reason to have lot numbers and dated products in our stores. Once a contaminated product is identified it can be taken from store shelves, and people can be warned about the problem. The bacteria causing the infections is called Salmonella agona. This bacteria rarely causes infections in humans. Only about 100 to 200 cases per year are reported in the United States. In fact, there is still some doubt that the cereal is really contaminated. However, the company that produced the cereal has voluntarily removed it from store shelves. The most common symptoms of this type of infection are diarrhea, fever, and abdominal cramps 12 to 72 hours after eating the organisms in a food product. The illness usually lasts four to seven days, and most persons recover without treatment. In some cases the diarrhea can cause dehydration and some people may need to be hospitalized. This brings me to an important point. We rely heavily on others to ensure our food is safe. Usually I really resent government intervention in our lives. However, in this case the government's safety standards and willingness to enforce those standards can save us from many many days of illness. For more information on this story go to:
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The copyright of the article Salmonella Contaminated Breakfast Cereal in Microbiology is owned by Neal Rolfe Chamberlain. Permission to republish Salmonella Contaminated Breakfast Cereal in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.
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