Vegetables nearly as dangerous as under-cooked meat, study says

[smoogatz]

Scripps Howard News Service

Fresh raw vegetables like lettuce, spinach, tomatoes and green onions were responsible for the illness or deaths of nearly 19,000 people nationwide over a five-year period.

Vegetables are nearly as dangerous as under-cooked meat when it comes to transmitting deadly food illnesses like E. coli, salmonella and hepatitis, according to a study of federal outbreak records by Scripps.

Beef, chicken, pork and their byproducts were responsible for nearly 22,600 deaths or illnesses, according to the study of 6,374 outbreaks reported from Jan. 1, 2000 through Dec. 31, 2004.

No other foodstuff came close to the threats posed by vegetables and meats, the study found. Seafood like raw oysters and tuna was a distant third, causing fewer than 3,000 deaths or illnesses.

more here: http://www.startribune.com/484/story/870246.html

Eat right, exercise, die anyway.

[Redstone]

1. "Eat right, exercise, die anyway." You got that right. You could get hit by a bus

while you're jogging.

Besides, as Mark Twain said, "If you eat right, exercise, and don't smoke or drink, you don't really live forever. It just seems like forever."

Redstone

[BuyingThyme]

2. That's it. I'm not gonna waste any more time cooking my meat.

[sam sarrha]

3. this is all because of campaign contributions to allow feed lot animals special dangerous privilege

with antibiotics and chemicals.. what caused the spinach deaths was someone dumped manure from a feed lot on land and it washed onto the water source for irrigation.. the bacteria was identified by DNA as feed lot bacteria

[nashville_brook]

9. olbermann last night had the author of Fast Food Nation on

commenting on the Taco Bell/green onion flap.

federal food inspections has gone down from (something like) 33,000 a year to 3,600 -- nearly a factor of 10! all b/c of lobbyists running the show in terms of policing the safety of our food.

so, when i see a story like this, i wonder about the accuracy of the numbers being recorded. Scripps supposedly did the story based on "federal numbers." i no longer trust the "federal government" to report fair numbers.

[sam sarrha]

18. * 's responce to the last mad cow found was to cut inspection from every1000 to 10,000 .

animals.. flat F*cking amazing..!! and no one squeeked.. i heard on NPR from an independant scientist that tested patients at Alzhimer care homes.. and found that 12-16% of patients were misdiagnosed and actually had CJD

see http://www.maddeer.org and check the links.. like concerned consumers.org

[nashville_brook]

32. yikes! another reason to eat your veggies! just wash 'em good.

[sam sarrha]

34. washing wont do any good,,, the bacteria is inside the vegi's,,!! its an alien invasion and we made

he alien..

[nashville_brook]

36. washing reduces 100 to 1, the surface bacteria -- that's nothing to sneeze at

yes, the recent spinach situation involved bacteria within the plant, but that's RARE compared to the bacteria that grows in moisture or is transferred by handling.

most extention services don't recommend using soap, but i use Dr. Bronner's (especially on waxy veggies) because i find that it helps cut thru the goop and (this is just me) i believe lots of ka-ka-yuckie hides in the goop.

[bloom]

22. "33,000 a year to 3,600"

that's crazy - but I'm not surprised - considering...


All the more reason to garden.

[Nikki Stone1]

33. Drowning the government in a bathtub. Did no one take Nordquist seriously?

They are destroying government.

[nashville_brook]

41. as if the drowning weren't bad enough... the bathtub is now contaminated

happy hepatitis ya'll!

[peace13]

4. That caps it

I'm gonna go get a beer!

[happydreams]

15. WOW, beer ain't on the list, I'll join you.

:toast:

[nashville_brook]

5. Dr. Bronners castile soap is great for washing veggies

[Beausoir]

24. Really? Why?

Seriously...how does this eliminate e-coli?

[Warren DeMontague]

30. It does a serious fuckin' whammy on ants, I'll tell you that much.

19 in 1 - and that's not counting as an extremely potent insecticide.

[knitter4democracy]

45. I use it for that, too. Heck, I use it for a lot of things.

We first found out about it when Hubby was in med school, and the prof recommended using the peppermint one for washing up after anatomy lab--only thing to get rid of that horrible smell. Worked when he was on surgery, too.

Kills ants, gets rid of formeldahyde smell, gets rid of bad smells out of cloth diapers and diaper covers, added to some baking soda makes for a great scrub, and watered down makes for a good handwash. Great stuff--I make sure I'm never without it.

[nashville_brook]

42. much bacteria is ON the plant. washing in just WATER reduces that from 100 to 1

according to most extension services and the FDA.

i use Dr. Bronners because it's a safe, soda-based detergent that rinses fast. i can easily tell how much of the veggie has been cleaned by feel. for me it's a perceptive tool.

bottom line is you should wash your HANDS before eating, no? well, imagine how many people have touched your produce on the way to market and then take into account what you know about germs being transferred by surfaces. given that we often eat produce raw, it makes sense to WASH and wash well.

[Kiouni]

6. any suggestions?

I read this in the article:

"Public health experts admit they are uncertain how much warning they should give the public about vegetables since there is often little people can do to protect themselves. Meat usually becomes safe if properly cooked. But systemically contaminated lettuce frequently remains a threat no matter how much it is washed."

any thoughts?

[smoogatz]

11. Buy local, avoid the salad bar at Denny's?

Hell, I don't know. They just had an outbreak at a Taco John's in the Twin Cities. I think the best bet is to get rid of Bushco and put some teeth back in the FDA, no?

[Eric J in MN]

12. If you're concerned about uncooked vegetables, then...

...eat cooked vegetables.

[seabeyond]

27. yes, but... isn't about all the nutritional value cooked OUT of veggies

so really we are eating a yukky that isn't doing a whole lot for us anyway?

[Eric J in MN]

35. I think vegetables still have some vitamins after cooking. NT

NT

[youthere]

38. I just visualized boiled lettuce...

:scared:

[greenman3610]

7. eat right, exercise right, and, yes, you'll eventually die

But, trust me, trust me, trust me...
there are an infinite variety of degenerative experiences that you
really would rather avoid, friends, and tho no one
can guarantee something bad won't happen to you,
to the degree you can, it is wise to
consider what measures one CAN take to
make it across this life with most of
your marbles intact.

What's more, eating shit just plays into the
hands of the man. Keeps you stupid and
too bogged in your own turgid
shit to stay awake , think properly, and
speak the truth.

[seafan]

8. I am reminded of another abomination by the GOP we need to reverse.

http://environment.about.com/gi/dynamic/offsite.htm?site=http://www.sfgate.com/cgi%2Dbin/article.cgi%3Ffile=/c/a/2006/03/09/MNGFMHL5921.DTL">House votes to dump state food safety laws

Zachary Coile, Chronicle Washington Bureau
March 9, 2006

(03-09) 04:00 PST Washington -- The House approved a bill Wednesday night that would wipe out state laws on safety labeling of food, overriding tough rules passed by California voters two decades ago that require food producers to warn consumers about cancer-causing ingredients.
The vote was a victory for the food industry, which has lobbied for years for national standards for food labeling and contributed millions of dollars to lawmakers' campaigns. But consumer groups and state regulators warned that the bill would undo more than 200 state laws, including California's landmark Proposition 65, that protect public health.

"The purpose of this legislation is to keep the public from knowing about the harm they may be exposed to in food," said Rep. Henry Waxman, D-Los Angeles, a chief critic of the measure.

Several critics argued that the bill was rushed through the House without complete hearings as a favor to a specific industry -- at the same time that members are talking about the evils of lobbying and proposing stricter ethical rules.

Under the bill, any state that wanted to keep its own tougher standards for food labeling would have to ask for approval from the Food and Drug Administration, which has been criticized by food safety groups as slow to issue consumer warnings.

The measure was approved after a debate in which House Democratic leader Nancy Pelosi of San Francisco accused the Republican majority of "shredding the food safety net that we have built in this country."

snip

(emphasis added)

[Eric J in MN]

14. Did it pass the Senate? NT

NT

[seafan]

19. It looks to be still in Senate committee, unless it was secreted into lame duck legislation.

http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/thomas

It's Senate bill 3128.

[Eric J in MN]

20. In that case, we're in the clear, since other posters

...at DU have posted that bills die if they don't pass both Houses by the end of a two year cycle.

[seafan]

23. Thanks, Eric. I hope this is the case. n/t

[Warpy]

10. Welcome to the third world

where people are advised to boil their water and eat nothing raw.

[smoogatz]

13. Yep.

We're a nation in serious decline, seems to me. On all fronts.

[Bluebear]

17. Yep, yep, yep.

I never thought about it re: foodstuffs but you are both correct. So many inspection and food safety laws have been overturned, we are now third world in so many ways.

[malaise]

21. Certainly not anywhere in

any of the developing countries I have lived in or visited. I trust the open markets for clean vegetables way more than packaging by multinational companies. Wash and eat.

[SOS]

26. A third world for wage earners...

meanwhile the CEOs of Archer Daniels, IBP, ConAgra, Tyson and Kraft are living in a splendor surpassing that of a Roman emperor.

[Warpy]

48. They're just as vulnerable to food borne diseases as we are

and that's the reason we've had public health enforcement in the past.

Disease doesn't respect income, and their days of eating salads will be over along with ours unless they grow them in the back yard and can trust the servants not to shit on them.

[HockeyMom]

16. Taco Bell

First they said that e-coli contamination came from green onions. Now, they are saying it was from raw yellow onions, possibly from the same farm where the contaminated spinach was from. There was one case where two brothers ate at the same time at the same Taco Bell. Only the boy who ate the veggie meal became sick.

Frankly, they just don't know. Perhaps they never will.

[noonwitch]

40. I love Taco Bell, and am now afraid to eat there!

It's my favorite fast food. I ate at one in Michigan right before the outbreak, and had items with green onions, but the e coli wasn't here, luckily.

[Beausoir]

25. This terrifies me. No joke. My daughter was born with solitary kidney. E-coli attacks the kidneys

She LIVES on fresh fruit and veggies.

She is 8.

She can eat a pint of cherry tomatoes a day. She doesn't prefer meat and doesn't care for it. She prefers fruit and veg in her diet. Give her the choice between ice cream and tomatoes and she'll hit the 'maters every time. She does like wild rice and peanut butter and some pasta.

Many of you will accuse me of hysteria, but this really frightens me. She doesn't have a kidney to spare. What are we supposed to do? Just keep feeding her this un-inspected corporate farm bullshit?

Organic isn't any better.

[knitter4democracy]

47. Wash it well and keep eating.

I have only one kidney now, and we're just more careful with washing everything. Fit is a good wash, but so is Dr. Bronners, as mentioned up-thread.

It also helps to buy produce grown here in the States under stricter rules. It doesn't make it entirely, perfectly safe, but at least we're not allowed to put raw human sewage on the fields.

Do you have a local farm that does produce delivery? We have one, and I love them. Much of it's hydroponic, but the quality in general is fantastic.

[Lisa]

28. I found a translated Roman recipe that recommended cooking lettuce

At first I wondered if this was because early forms of the crop were rather bitter and tough, and the cooking would make them more palatable, but it's also possible that this was a simple health precaution. In ancient times (and right through the Middle Ages up to the present, in some areas) human waste was used as a fertilizer. So it totally made sense to cook the **** out of everything, even the fruits and vegetables.

A lot of techniques for food storage (pickling, canning, etc.) will also kill bacteria, so this might have served a dual purpose. We might have to kiss our fresh imported produce goodbye, and go back to the old methods, at this rate.

[sakabatou]

29. So, I guess stir fries are alright?

[Warren DeMontague]

31. You know what IS good for you?

Drinkin'

Smokin' Weed

And Most Importantly, Frequent Sex and/or Masturbation. And lots of it, boys.

[JustABozoOnThisBus]

44. Good advice, Dr Impeachdubya

But let's clarify - "drinkin'" doesn't mean water. Not raw water, cooked water, fresh water, packaged water.

You can get good meat protein from the bottom of a bottle of Mescal.

[Warren DeMontague]

46. And I don't even drink any more.

I'm not not the health nut I used to be!

[shanti]

37. unless you grown them yourself

n/t

[nashville_brook]

43. grow yer own!! it's good for the soul as well as your health.

:evilgrin:

we need more connections to our food! it's a celebration of life. there's nothing better than bringing in fresh grown veggies from the garden! herbs too, if you have a less-than-green thumb. just do it!

[Lone_Star_Dem]

39. One more safety net gone at the expense of many Americans

For the profit of a few producers.

[NaturalHigh]

49. I don't like vegetables anyway.