Foodborne Botulism Treatment Information
- By:Juliet Cohen
Botulism is a rare but serious illness. It is serious paralytic illness caused by a nerve toxin, botulin, that is produced by the bacterium Clostridium botulinum. There are three types of botulism: food, wound and infant botulism. Eating food that has the botulism toxin causes food-borne botulism. It often involves improperly processed home canned foods. Wound botulism occurs when Clostridium botulinum spores contaminate a wound and produce toxin. Botulism in infants under one year of age has been associated with ingestion of clostridium botulinum spores from the environment or specific foods such as honey.
Food Botulism is caused by eating foods containing botulinum toxin. The botulism food affects the nervous system. Person-to-person spread does not happen. A person may acquire foodborne botulism after eating contaminated food that had not been properly cooked or reheated. The symptoms are symmetrical and often involved blurred or double vision, drooping eyelids, difficulty swallowing, dry mouth, and muscle weakness. Fever is absent, unless a complication infection. Symptoms of botulism food usually appear 12-36 hours after eating contaminated food. In rare cases, symptoms may not develop for several days.
Botulism can be treated with an antitoxin, which blocks the action of the toxin circulating in the blood. Frozen foods should be thawed in the refrigerator, rather than at room temperature. Bulging containers should not be opened and foods with off-odors should not be eaten or even tasted. Avoid storing garlic/oil preparations at room temperatures. All canned and preserved foods must be properly processed and prepared. Canned food with bulging lids should be thrown away. Identified sources of infant botulism, such as honey, should not be fed to infants. Reheated foods should be heated to 165oF.
Foodborne Botulism Treatment and Prevention Tips
1. Reheated foods should be heated to 165°F.
2. Frozen foods should be thawed in the refrigerator.
3. Avoid storing garlic/oil preparations at room temperatures.
4. Home-canned foods should be boiled for 10 minutes before eating.
5. Avoiding punctures by unsterile things such as needles used for street drug injections.About the author:
Juliet Cohen writes article for Sty Treatment. She also writes articles for Makeup and Skin Care.