Salmonella; a form of bacteria that we’ve all heard of. We’ve
all heard how dangerous and even deadly it can be,…but is there any true way to
rid ourselves of it? According to researchers from the National University of
Ireland, once salmonella bacteria gets into the foods we eat, it has the chance
to form a biofilm on surfaces throughout the food facilities. This biofilm is
extraordinarily difficult, if not impossible to kill. Using three different
forms of disinfectants, none of them were capable of killing off the bacteria
after it had been allowed a short seven days to grow. Even soaking the biofilms
in disinfectant for over an hour failed to kill them. Why have this study now?
There was a European outbreak in which 160 people from 10 different countries
became sick with gastroenteritis (vomiting and diarrhea) from a form of
Salmonella. The outbreak was traced back to meat from a food facility. What
sparked their interest was the fact that the Salmonella seemed to be coming
from a part of the factory where the meat was no longer raw, but had already
been cooked all the way through. They wanted to know what made this strand of
Salmonella strong enough to make it through the high temperature environments.
They found that they were able to survive through creating dense layer of
biofilm on the surfaces throughout the facility.
I found this article to be interesting because there are
over a million cases of Salmonella per year, with 23,000 hospitalizations and a
minimum of 450 fatalities. That is a huge amount of such a tiny microbe. If
researchers could find a better way of fighting such a dangerous bacteria, our
food would not only be healthier, but there would be less deaths from it. I do
think that the article should’ve touched a bit more on how Salmonella actually
develops in a place such as a food industry. It would be beneficial to know how
it actually got there in the first place. Other than that, it really makes you
think about where and what you may be unknowingly eating. Yuck!
Article: http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/01/140115172952.htm?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+sciencedaily+%28Latest+Science+News+--+ScienceDaily%29
Image: http://www.foodpoisonjournal.com/foodborne-illness-outbreaks/an-unforgettable-salmonella-illness/
