Poison control: one in four Americans suffers from a food-borne illness every year. A few precautions can help you avoid becoming part of that statistic

Natural Health, June, 2007 by Cheryl Solimini

EVERY YEAR more than 76 million Americans eat something that makes them sick While the majority of those cases result in a short bout of nausea, stomach cramps, vomiting, and diarrhea, more than 300,000 food-poisoning victims end up in the hospital--and 5,000 die. Better tracking by public-health agencies and more reports in the media give the impression that food poisoning is on the rise. In reality, there were fewer infections in 2005 than in 1996, according to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC). What has changed is the breadth of outbreaks and the kind of foods that are common carriers of such pathogens.

For decades, the usual suspects were undercooked hamburger and chicken, or tuna salad that sat out too long. Not anymore. Since last September, three major outbreaks stemmed from fresh produce: E. coli-infected spinach killed three people and sickened almost 200 in 26 states and Canada, tomatoes with salmonella upset the stomachs of 183 people in 21 states and Canada, and E. coli in lettuce affected 70 people in five states. A fourth outbreak, of salmonella-tainted peanuts in commercial peanut butter, made 290 people in 39 states ill and resulted in the recall of Peter Pan and Wal-Mart's Great Value brands with the batch number 2111.

Produce problem

In the 1970s, produce was involved in less than 1 percent of all food poisoning outbreaks (defined as an incident in which at least two cases are linked to one infected source). By the late 1990s, the rate rose to 6 percent, and between 1999 and 2004, it more than doubled--from about 40 cases to 86, according to the CDC.

There are several reasons for the change. First, more people eat raw vegetables today than they did 30 years ago. In addition, our country's aging population, which tends to live with chronic conditions that can compromise immune systems, means that as a group, we've become more susceptible to pathogens.

Moreover, U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) surveys show consumers are more aware of how to prepare animal proteins in ways that lower contamination risk, but may not realize the importance of taking safety precautions with fresh produce. This is compounded by the way government oversees food: "Twenty percent of the food supply [meat, poultry, and dairy] is regulated by the U.S. Department of Agriculture [USDA] under a very intensive program. Everything else is regulated by the FDA on a shoestring budget," notes Caroline Smith DeWaal, director of food safety for the Center for Science in the Public Interest. The FDA has guidelines and offers technical assistance to the nation's growers, but it has fewer resources than the USDA to enforce standards.

Cases of food-related disease are also influenced by changes in the marketplace, such as the increasingly centralized food production system. "People are using more raw, bagged, pre-prepared produce," notes Shelley Feist, executive director of the Partnership for Food Safety Education. The more a food is processed, especially in factory operations with both a high volume and large variety of products, the greater the chance of introducing bacteria. Such contamination is transmitted through unsanitary water or bacteria-infected animals and workers that come in contact with the produce. (The E. coli strain responsible for last fall's organic spinach outbreak is thought to have been caused by wild pigs that had wandered from cow pastures with infected cattle feces into the spinach fields or ground water contaminated by flooding rivers.) Additionally, once fresh produce is cut, its exterior barrier breaks, exposing more surface area to pathogens and releasing bacteria-feeding nutrients. If an infected bunch of spinach is chopped and mixed with untainted spinach, the germs will be spread throughout the batch, which is then packaged in hundreds of bags and distributed across the country.

Pathogen danger

Most bacteria that cause food poisoning are found in the soft and on the skin, in the intestines, and in the manure of poultry, cattle, sheep, and other livestock Harmless in small numbers, these bacteria become more powerful if the food they're in hasn't been properly processed, handled, cooked, or dulled. Bacteria and other organisms like to feed on warm, moist, protein-rich foods, such as mayonnaise-based salads left at room temperature. In such conditions, the germs multiply beyond safe levels or produce toxins that disrupt the digestive system or enter the bloodstream, which can lead to an organ infection.

In an effort to eliminate harmful organisms, food processors irradiate (which is opposed by organic food advocates), pasteurize, or pressure-cook many goods sold to consumers, including meat and poultry, dairy, and canned goods. There is evidence that grass-fed cattle harbor less harmful E. coli than those that eat grain. To reduce your risk of getting sick from fresh produce, buy from small-volume purveyors, like local farms, that follow strict food-handling standards, and purchase fruits and vegetables that are whole, not precut or unpeeled. Here are other ways to ensure food is as safe as possible: