Six fundamental hygiene rules to avoid salmonellosis- breaking latest news

Salmonella risk. With this motivation, the Ministry of Health has published on its website theprecautionary recall notice for some batches of products, such as eggs, cured meats, clams, infusions, for which we invite you not to consume them and to return them to the point of sale. No alarmism, it means that the control system is working well, along the entire production chain (production, transformation, marketing), which protects our health, reassures Laura Cordier, medical specialist in Infectious Diseases Operating Unit I Infectious Diseases, Sacco Hospital in Milan.

Salmonella is a bacterium that can cause a disease called salmonellosis. How does it get to the man?

The natural habitat of salmonella is the gastrointestinal tract of some animals, mainly poultry and pigs which eliminate the bacterium with their feces and these can contaminate food. That is why one of the most important vehicles for the spread of infection in humans are eggs, meat, raw milk and their derivatives. Vehicles of infection are also surfaces, utensils and any food handled by infected people, with little attention to personal hygiene.

So should you not eat the most risky foods?

No, just follow the six most common rules of hygiene and cleaning.
One: good hand hygiene with hot water and soap, before, during and after food preparation.
Due: clean kitchen utensils, worktops, sinks and small appliances used for food preparation with hot water and detergent.
Three: washing fruits and vegetables, they are not reservoirs of infection, but they can transmit it if contaminated with feces of infected animals or humans or if irrigated with contaminated water.
Quattro: cook food, especially poultry (the meat must have a uniform whitish color), pork and eggs, at at least 70C: bacteria are easily eliminated at this temperature. The sterilizing effect of the cooking heat is canceled out if the cooked food is subsequently contaminated with contaminated dishes or hands. Five: separate cooked foods from raw ones, store them in the refrigerator at 4 degrees centigrade. Above 7 the bacterium can reproduce. Periodically clean the fridge with warm water and vinegar.
I knowi: use safe water and raw materials. Contaminated food does not show any alteration neither in appearance nor in color, smell, taste, consistency.

What to do if an egg is dirty with feces?

Clean it with a damp paper cloth only before use and discard the cloth immediately. Washing under running water risks contaminating the sink which, if not sanitized, can be a source of contagion. Do not break the eggs on the edge of the pot they are cooked or mixed in. Keep them in the container that prevents breakage and discard them if the shell is cracked.

Is sushi raw fish risky?

Only if the person handling it carries salmonella and does not respect the hygiene rules.

How widespread and how does salmonella manifest itself?

Non-typhoid or minor infections are the most common in Italy, responsible for over 50% of all gastrointestinal infections. They manifest themselves with fever, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea and abdominal cramps, symptoms that appear between 6 and 72 hours after ingestion of contaminated food and generally resolve on their own in a few days. The doctor can recommend rehydrating solutions to compensate for lost water and salts, lactic ferments and prebiotics. The other form of infection is typhoid, or greater, for which man is the only reservoir of the bacterium, typical of countries with a low level of sanitation.

Is there a vaccine?

There are thousands of variants of non-typhoid salmonella, for this there is no vaccine, possible remedy, however, for the other form.