Posts Tagged ‘ foodborne illness ’

Foodborne Illness: The Proof is in the Poo

August 7th, 2009. By janem

If you have contracted a foodborne illness, the last thing on your mind is getting a stool sample—you just want to stop the nausea and diarrhea and all the other nasty symptoms that are associated with food poisoning. And chances are, your doctor may not ask for one; he is focusing on getting you better. But if you are contemplating a lawsuit, insist on getting a stool sample, before taking any antibiotics.

If you want to pursue a foodborne illness lawsuit you must prove that (1) the food product you ate was contaminated and that (2) the contamination was the cause of your illness.

Determining the specific food culprit sometimes isn’t so easy, particularly if there is a time delay between eating the food that made you sick and developing the food Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: foodborne illness
Posted in Emerging Issues, Personal Injury | No Comments »

Is the Recession Increasing Foodborne Illness?

July 7th, 2009. By janem

Food manufacturers and retailers are watching their bottom line and finding ways to protect their profits, such as finding cheaper sources of supply, but at the same time they may be contributing to foodborne illness. One of my local grocery stores actually sells products at a huge discount if the “best before” date has expired, rather than send items back to the manufacturer. Perhaps the manufacturer is also getting a kick-back…Even nitwit UK celebrity cook Clarissa Dickson Wright  said that “use by” dates were a marketing gimmick and advised viewers just to give food “a sniff”. Bad advice.

And I just heard that Frugal Food, Delia Smith’s bestseller from the 1970s, is being republished. In the book she advises families to cut costs by making food last longer, reheat leftovers, freeze spare portions and use whatever lurks in the fridge and freezer rather than turf it.

Just in the past few years the US has seen outbreaks from spinach, tomatoes, frozen pizza, peanut butter, hamburger meat, Asian spices and most recently, Nestlé Tollhouse cookie dough. Of course 2 main reasons for potential outbreaks are the increasing complexity of the food chain and globalisation and the ability of new pathogens to evolve. However, could these cost-cutting measures be a contributing factor to increased foodborne illness outbreaks?

Tags: E Coli, foodborne illness
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