By JASON CARSON
Food-borne illnesses are not uncommon along the Wasatch Front. Many people have heard of various breakouts of Hepatitis A which spread quickly when restaurant employees forgot to wash their hands.
What is not so well-know, however, is how uncomfortable, dangerous and far-reaching some of these illnesses can be.
“This is a big concern,” said Dr. Gabriela Kaufman, an infectious disease specialist at LDS Hospital in Salt Lake City.
Various outbreaks of e. coli within the past few years have led to heightened concern about food-handling practices in some restaurants in the area.
These outbreaks have led to the discovery of another, more dangerous strain of the bacteria, e. coli 0157:H7. Death, most often by kidney failure, has proven to be the result for approximately three to five percent of the children who have been infected with the strain, Kaufman said.
Most food-borne illnesses, however, are not life-threatening. Less threatening food-borne illnesses include salmonella, shigella and Hepatitis A. Symptoms of these include bloody diarrhea, dehydration, severe vomiting and nausea, stomach cramps and fever.
Kaufman said anytime you have bloody diarrhea or dehydration, especially when accompanied by a fever, you should see a doctor. As with most illnesses, Kaufman suggests drinking plenty of fluids.
One of the main causes of food-borne illnesses, according to Kaufman, is eating meat — especially ground meats and roast beef — that is not fully cooked. She said people should avoid eating meat that has any pink in it and suggested ordering hamburgers well-done.
David Banks, a medical technologist at Talbert Medical Center in Orem, suggests washing counters, cutting boards, sponges and rags thoroughly between the preparation of meat products and other foods, such as vegetables. This measure helps prevent the cross-contamination of other foods that may not be cooked as well.
Banks also suggests that special attention be given to keeping creamy spreads, such as salad dressings and mayonnaise, refrigerated to avoid the growth of harmful bacteria.
Kaufman and Dr. Larry J. Wright, an associate at LDS Hospital, will be answering questions about food-borne illnesses Saturday from 10 a.m. to noon on a toll-free hotline sponsored by Intermountain Health Care. The hotline number is 1-800-925-8177.
