A Newspaper Article aimed at raising awareness among school children regarding food poisoning diseases caused by microorganisms. BT 2014 - Principles of Microbiology Group Assignment
Food poisoning is an illness caused by eating contaminated food. 2.what is the primary cause of food poisoning? 1.What is food poisoning ? Microbial contamination in food is the primary cause of food poisoning 3.What are the causes of food poisoning? It is caused by bacteria, viruses or other germs present in the food and liquids that we consume.Foods and liquids can be contaminated at lots of different points during food preparation, storage, and handling. 4.What are some symptoms of food poisoning? nausea (feeling sick) stomach cramps and abdominal pain vomiting Diarrhoea Fever
Salmonellosis: Caused by the Salmonella bacterium, it can lead to symptoms such as diarrhoea, fever, and abdominal cramps. E. coli infection: Certain strains of Escherichia coli can cause food poisoning, leading to symptoms such as severe abdominal cramps, diarrhoea, and vomiting. Listeriosis: Caused by the Listeria bacterium, it can result in fever, muscle aches, and gastrointestinal symptoms, especially in pregnant women, newborns, and adults with weakened immune system. Campylobacteriosis: Caused by Campylobacter bacteria, it leads to symptoms such as diarrhoea (sometimes bloody), fever, and abdominal cramps Not only bacteria ,food poisoning can also be caused by viruses. Norovirus infection-This highly contagious virus can cause gastroenteritis,leading to symptoms such as nausea,vomiting,diarrhoea and stomach pain. Rota virus infection- This causes a self limited gastroenteritis.Symptoms include anorexia,low grade fever,watery bloodless diarrhoea,vomiting and abdominal cramps. Astrovirus infection- It is the common cause of diarrhoea in kids.Most cases are mild and dont last long.Main symptoms include mild watery diarrhoea, nausea,vomiting,abdominal pain and fever. Sapovirus infection- This virus can cause acute gastroenteritis in people of all ages.It can result in vomiting,diarrhoea,chills, headache,myalgia and malaise.Healthy person can recover within a few days. Hepatitis A virus infection- This causes inflammation of the liver that can cause mild to severe illness.Adults are more likely to have symptoms like Yellow skin,fever,vomiting,dark urine,joint pain etc. Bacteria are most common source of food poisoning.Those cause illnesses such as, Food poisoning caused by parasites isn’t as common as food poisoning caused by bacteria, but parasites that spread through food are still very dangerous.Some parasites , such as fish-borne trematodes are only transmitted through food. Others for example tapeworms like Echinococcus spp,Taenia spp, may infect people through food or direct contact with animals.Ascaris, Cryptosporidium, Entamoeba histolytica enter the food chain via water or soil and contaminate fresh produce. Some illnesses are caused by of chemicals(eg. heavy metals, mushroom toxins) or performed microbial toxins( eg. Staphylococcal toxin, Botulinum toxin). 5.Which illnesses are caused by foodborne microbes? 6.Who is most at risk from foodborne illness? Age- children under the age 5, adults aged 65 or older Pregnancy Chronic diseases- infections, cancer, immunodeficiency diseases, autoimmune diseases Medications- Corticosteroids and immunosuppressants can impress immune system You may be more likely to get sick from food poisoning, or have a more severe reaction to food poisoning, or have a more severe reaction to food poisoning, if your immune system is not strong as average. Temporary things can impact your immunity, as well as long term conditions such as, 7.Why are school children more susceptible to food poisoning due to microbz Because young children often have incomplete hygiene practices like improper hand washing. Hand- to-Mouth behaviour shown by most young children because of lack of awareness. Not having proper knowledge about food safety and as a result, consumption of contaminated food items. Children do have immature immune systems compared to adults. This causes them to become more susceptible to infections. Children may not avoid undercooked meat and unhealthy food items like unwashed foods. Children may often handle food in unsafe ways and also store in inappropriate ways that will cause contamination.
8.What are the recommended prophylactic measures to mitigate the risk of foodborne microbial contamination and subsequent food poisoning among school children? School children are a major group of people who are affected by diseases associated with food poisoning due to microbes as a result of a variety of reasons. Therefore preventive measures need to be taken to avoid this situation; Measures that can be taken to prevent Salmonellosis are supervising hand washing of children and making them aware about proper handwashing and aso teaching children not to consume raw eggs. In prevention of E. coli infection also, encouraging proper hand washing is a need. Children can be made aware not to eat undercooked ground beef. In prevention of Listeriosis, it is important to make children aware about safe food choices and storage techniques. Proper monitoring of their food consumption is also needed. To prevent Norovirus infection, as adults we can teach children about proper hand washing and hygiene practices, asking them to avoid consumption of raw or uncooked food. Making children aware to maintain proper hygiene practices, teaching them to avoid consumption of raw milk are some of the precautions that can be taken to avoid Campylobacteriosis. Overall it’s significant that making school children aware about proper food safety practices, encouraging good personal hygiene and maintaining proper food safety standards in school cafeterias and in home food preparations can reduce the susceptibility of school children to food poisoning due to microbes. 9.How can individuals minimise the risk of food poisoning? First and foremost, it's imperative to practise good hygiene, which includes thoroughly washing the hands both before and after handling raw meat, poultry, or fish. To avoid cross-contamination, people should also make sure that all cooking utensils and surfaces are clean and sanitised. It is crucial to keep food refrigerated as soon as possible, store it at the proper temperature, and avoid letting it sit at room temperature for long periods of time. People should exercise caution when eating raw foods like sprouts or unpasteurized dairy products because they can contain bacteria and raise the risk of food poisoning. 10.What are the ways in which food is contaminated by microorganisms during food processing? Food is grown in soil that is exposed to sewage or contaminated animal waste. Livestock are kept in unhygienic conditions. Problems during production or storage of food.
Cleaning- making sure our hands,surfaces and equipment are clean before,during and after cooking. Cooking- making sure food is cooked throughout to kill harmful bacteria 13.What are the hygienic methods that can be followed while handling food? 11. What are the hygienic methods that can be followed while storing food? Store food in suitable ,covered containers. Avoid refreezing thawed foods. Store raw foods below cooked foods. Keep high risk food at 5 °C or below or above 60 °C to avoid the temperature danger zone and food poisoning. Store food in clean. Make sure food storage containers have not been used to store things other than food,and wash and sanitise them before use. 12 . What are the hygienic methods that can be followed while cooking? Wash and dry our hands thoroughly. Stop hair, clothes, jewellery, or phone touching food or surfaces. Don’t touch ready-to-eat food with your bare hands. Use gloves or spoons. Wear clean clothing or aprons. Don’t touch your hair, eyes, mouth, or nose, and then proceed to touch food without washing your hands, which promotes the spread of that bacteria. 14. So do they always harmful to humans? No. Some of them help us by doing various activities inside the human body and also in different industries which make products essential to us in day to day life . 15. What are the duties of microorganisms in the human body? Contribute in digestion Produce Vitamin K Promote the immune system Detoxify harmful chemicals.
16. What are the industries that need the support of microorganisms? Food production (Dairy products , Bakery products) Beverage production (alcohol) Health industry (Antibiotics, Immunization vaccines ) Waste management purposes Agriculture and biotechnology Cosmetics Industry(Botox injection) Around600 million peoplefallill aftereatingcontaminatedfood, and 420,000 die yearly from foodbornediseases(WHO) NHS inform. (2023, May 29). Food poisoning | NHS inform. NHS Inform. https://www.nhsinform.scot/illnesses-andconditions/infections-and-poisoning/food-poisoning/ Fast facts about food poisoning. (2023, March 24). Centres for Disease Control and Prevention. https://www.cdc.gov/foodsafety/food-poisoning.html References: 1. 1. Ways to Prevent Food Poisoning.(2022,SEPTEMBER1) https://www.everydayhealth.com/healthy-home-photos/7-tips-toprevent-food-poisioning.aspx
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