Combating E.Coli and Salmonella Bacteria

Introduction

E. coli and salmonella bacteria are the major cause of illnesses in the United Stated and worldwide. People can easily get infected with E. coli and Salmonella such as they can get the bacteria from eating contaminated food and drinking contaminated water. The purpose of this review paper is to answer the questions about how we can combat E. coli and Salmonella that present in ground beef and what are the emerging technologies to prevent their presence in ground beef.

There are ways and methods that can be used to avoid E. coli and Salmonella infections such as radiation and high pressure. The reason why is topic is interesting and important because of many people get sick and die every year from E. coli and Salmonella infections, and they even do not know the how they get infected.

To prevent E. coli and Salmonella infections, people should first educate themselves on how these bacteria can be transmitted as well as knowing the proper ways to eradicate them. people should also understand the basics of E. coli and Salmonella infection. E. coli (Escherichia coli) are bacteria that can be found in healthy animals and humans’ intestines, food, and the environment.

The shape of E. coli is rod-shaped, and it is also gram-negative bacteria. Many E. coli strains found in people and animals’ bodies don not cause diseases. They are basically harmless, but sometimes they could cause mild diarrhea. On the other hand, they are some other E. coli strains that can be significantly harmful to animals and humans such as E. coli O157: H7. These bad strains of E. coli could cause severe diarrhea, vomiting, abdominal cramps, pain, and even death.

People usually get the bacteria E. coli from contaminated food and water. For example, people can get E. coli infection from eating contaminated ground beef, and that happens when butchers slaughter and cut up the animals, the E. coli that present in their intestines could get into the meats and contaminate it. Eating ground beef could be even more dangerous because the meats could be obtained from different cows and blended together.

Drinking and eating unpasteurized milk products also can be risky because milking utensils and cows’ breasts could be contaminated with E. coli and could easily get into the raw mild.

Unwashed fruits and vegetables such as (spinach and lettuce) can be contaminated with E. coli as well. In many of the developing countries, unclean water could be the main reason why people get infected with E. coli especially in rural areas, and that because most people in these developing countries drink water directly from small rivers and lakes. These rivers and lakes could be contaminated with E. coli from people and animals’ feces. Also, if this contaminated water used to water crops, humans could get the E. coli infection from eating fresh and unwashed fruits and vegetables. Furthermore, swimming in pools or rivers can cause E. coli infection, and that because of the water could be contaminated with humans and animals’ feces. E. coli could also be transmitted from person to a person especially infected kids and older people who do not properly wash their hands.

There are also long-term consequences when infected with E. coli bacteria such as kidney failure and even death.

The other risky bacteria that people should be aware of if Salmonella. Salmonella are also bacteria found in well humans and animals’ intestines. It is one of the bacteria diseases that affects the intestinal tract. Salmonella is also rod-shaped and gram-negative bacteria. People who are infected with Salmonella bacteria usually do not show any symptoms, but other people may get diarrhea, abdominal cramps, fever, headaches, vomiting, and even more. People usually get Salmonella infection by eating raw eggs, uncooked meats, and drinking raw milk products. People who also do not wash their hands properly after using the toilets, they could contaminate the food while preparing it. Infection with Salmonella bacteria can also occur when touching pets who are infected with the bacteria. Salmonella infection is not as dangerous as we think if the proper medical instructions are followed, but it could be life-threatening too especially with pregnant women, infants, older people, and people who are suffering from weaken immune systems.

For example, if somebody has a weak immune system and gets Salmonella infection, this person could develop serious diseases like AIDS, anemia, and malaria. Humans usually are cured from Salmonella infection within couple days without using any specialized treatment. Since people get Salmonella infection by drinking contaminated water, Salmonella outbreaks mostly occur in developing and poor countries where most people drink raw water straight from lakes, rivers, and streams.

People also from these poor countries drink raw milks because financially they do not have the ability to pasteurize milk and its products. Additionally, these poor people are not capable to properly store foods such as meats because they cannot afford refrigerators, and even in some countries there is no electricity to use refrigerators. So, people who travel to these developing countries could easily get infected with Salmonella Bacteria.

Body

As it was mentioned above the goal of this article paper is to figure out the proper ways and methods to combat the presence of E. coli and Salmonella in ground beef. It is common that people get infected with E. coli and Salmonella bacteria after eating contaminated ground beef, and that probably because when cows are slaughtered, the bacteria that in their intestines get blended with the meat.

In addition, ground beef could be making from many different cows, it is hard to tell which cow has E. coli or Salmonella infections. Every year thousands of people get infected with E. coli and Salmonella that present in ground beef in the United States and worldwide, and these people even have no idea of how they get this bacterial infection.

This review article would intensively explain the steps that people can take to avoid these deadly infections. It would also show the appropriate procedures that ground meats companies use to prevent E. coli and Salmonella from getting into the ground beef. 

References

E‐beam processing of meat products at chilled temperatures will maximize reduction of E. coli O157:H7 while preventing growth of spoilage bacteria. E‐beam dose of 3.0 kGy resulted in over a 9‐log reduction of E. coli O157:H7 in ground beef, chicken breast meat, and trout fillets at 22, 4, and −20 °C.

https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/j.1750-3841.2006.00105.x