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By Carol Rados
Listeria monocytogenes (L. monocytogenes) is a harmful bacterium that can be found in a variety of foods. In pregnant women, L. monocytogenes-caused illness can result in miscarriage, fetal death, or severe illness or death of a newborn infant. The elderly and those with weakened immune systems are also at risk for severe illness or death from L. monocytogenes-contaminated food. Source: FDA/CDC 2003 Update of the Listeria Action Plan |
Keeping ready-to-eat foods cold is key to reducing listeriosis, a serious infection in humans. That's one of the conclusions of a recent Food and Drug Administration risk assessment on the relationship between foodborne listeriosis and human health.
Listeriosis is an illness caused by eating foods contaminated with Listeria monocytogenes, bacteria found in soil and water. Food-producing animals can carry these bacteria in their intestines. As a result, the disease-causing bacteria may be spread to meat and dairy products. Ready-to-eat foods also can become contaminated within the processing plant, after processing, or along the route from plant to plate.
Listeriosis has been recognized as an important public health problem in the United States. Scientific information from the FDA's risk assessment outlines measures that industry, retailers and consumers can take to dramatically reduce the risk of this potentially fatal infection.
Listeriosis causes flu-like symptoms, such as fever and chills. Sometimes people have an upset stomach. If the infection spreads to the nervous system, symptoms such as headache, stiff neck, confusion, loss of balance, or convulsions can occur.
Babies can be born with listeriosis if their mothers eat contaminated food during pregnancy. Although healthy people may consume contaminated foods without becoming ill, those at increased risk for infection--people over 60, newborns, and people with weakened immune systems--are more likely to get listeriosis after eating food contaminated with even a few bacteria. People at risk can prevent the infection by avoiding certain high-risk foods and by handling food properly.
Outbreaks of listeriosis are associated with ready-to-eat foods such as hot dogs, luncheon meats, cold cuts, soft cheeses, deli-style meats, and poultry. Although listeria bacteria are killed with thorough cooking or by other heating methods, such as pasteurization, these tough bugs can grow in the refrigerator and survive in the freezer. The FDA and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) advise that the most important things consumers can do to reduce the risk of illness are:
Although listeriosis is potentially life-threatening, the CDC's FoodNet program has recorded over a 40 percent decrease in its incidence during the past five years. The results of the risk assessment reinforce past studies that found that, even though foodborne listeriosis is rare and declining, it remains a public health concern. The CDC estimates that in the United States, 2,500 people become seriously ill with listeriosis each year, and of these, 500 die.
The following advice is provided for pregnant women, older adults, and people with weakened immune systems who are at higher risk for listeriosis:
Follow these four basic steps to food safety promoted by the food safety education program called Fight BAC!
Preventing foodborne illness
www.foodsafety.gov
Listeriosis risk assessment
www.cfsan.fda.gov/~dms/fs-toc.html#risk