At least 27 people are hospitalised with major food poisoning
AT LEAST 27 people who fell victim to serious food poisoning have been hospitalised since the outbreak of the heatwave, it emerged yesterday.
Some 47 cases of a serious form of E.coli – which can be fatal – were notified to the country’s disease watchdog.
The highest toll of patients were in the east and south followed by cases in the south east and mid-west.
The alert has been issued in a report from the Health Protection Surveillance Centre .
Eating meat, particularly if it is minced and not cooked enough to kill off the bacteria, is believed to be a particular culprit.
Other suspect foods are coleslaw, salad vegetables and fresh garnishes which have not been cleaned properly.
The risk has increased as thousands of people have been tempted by the sunshine and glorious summer evenings to dine outdoors having dusted down the barbecue.
The VTEC strains which can cause serious illness produce a powerful toxin.
VTEC infection often causes severe, bloody diarrhoea and abdominal cramps.
Usually there is little or no fever, and patients recover within five to 10 hours of becoming ill.
However, in some people, particularly children under five years of age and the elderly, the infection can also cause a complication called haemolytic uraemic syndrome (HUS).
When this happens, the red blood cells are destroyed and the kidneys fail. It happens in 5-8pc of cases, although rates as high as 30pc have been reported during outbreaks.
VTEC can live in the intestines of healthy cattle and sheep and can be shed in their faeces.
Contaminated
Water sources can also become contaminated with animal waste so drinking or swimming in untreated streams and rivers can result in infection.
The report said there were 47 cases last week compared to between nine and 27 in the same period in the previous three years. It said: “Of particular note was the high number and proportion of adult cases.”
Earlier this year, more than half were children, but last week 85pc were adults.
The watchdog said that during the summer season the public were urged to remember basic food safety advice for barbecues and picnics:
■ Wash your hands before and after handling food;
■ Unless a food product is meant to be cooked straight from frozen, make sure that
any frozen foods have been thawed out before you start cooking them;
■ Use separate cooking utensils and plates for handling raw and cooked meats;
■ Make sure any minced meats such as burgers and sausages are cooked all the way through by checking that the meat is piping hot throughout; there is no pink meat when you cut into the centre of the meat; the meat juices run clear; wash fruits and vegetables thoroughly in drinking water, especially those that will not be cooked.
Meanwhile, Helen Forristal, director of nursing services at the Marie Keating Foundation warned parents to be careful that their children don’t get sunburn.
“Parents need to be extra vigilant during this intense heat. Particularly those with babies under six months as their skin contains too little melanin, which is the pigment that gives skin, hair and eyes their colour, and provides some protection from the sun.
“They should be kept out of the sun and away from direct sunlight. Older infants and children should be kept out of the sun between 11am and 3pm and factor 50 sunscreen should be applied every two hours to ensure no spots are missed due to sweating, clothes rubbing or swimming.
Protection
“The methods parents use to protect their kids may not be giving the full level of protection expected.
“Often parents put their children in T-shirts to protect them from the sun, and while we do promote ensuring that everyone is properly covered from the sun, it’s important to note that light-coloured, openweave fabrics do not offer much protection from the sun and wet T-shirts that children wear in the pool or the sea, offer even less protection.
“If possible ensure children are always covered up wearing long-sleeved, closely woven clothing, preferably in dark colours.
“A great idea for the pool or by the sea is to use those UV long-sleeved swimsuits.”
The risk has increased as people are dining outdoors. Eating uncooked meat or infected coleslaw are believed to be a particular culprit in E.coli infections