Antibiotic Resistance Could Bring 'End of Modern Medicine'

By Katie Moisse | ABC News Blogs

As bacteria evolve to evade antibiotics, common infections could become deadly, according to Dr. Margaret Chan, director general of the World Health Organization.

Speaking at a conference in Copenhagen, Chan said antibiotic resistance could bring about "the end of modern medicine as we know it."

"We are losing our first-line antimicrobials," she said Wednesday in her keynote address at the conference on combating antimicrobial resistance. "Replacement treatments are more costly, more toxic, need much longer durations of treatment, and may require treatment in intensive care units."

Chan said hospitals have become "hotbeds for highly-resistant pathogens" like methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, "increasing the risk that hospitalization kills instead of cures."

Indeed, diseases that were once curable, such as tuberculosis, are becoming harder and more expensive to treat.

Chan said treatment of  multidrug resistant tuberculosis was "extremely complicated, typically requiring two years of medication with toxic and expensive medicines, some of which are in constant short supply. Even with the best of care, only slightly more than 50 percent of these patients will be cured."

Antibiotic-resistant strains of salmonella, E. coli, and gonorrhea have also been discovered.

"Some experts say we are moving back to the pre-antibiotic era. No. This will be a post-antibiotic era. In terms of new replacement antibiotics, the pipeline is virtually dry," said Chan. "A post-antibiotic era means, in effect, an end to modern medicine as we know it. Things as common as strep throat or a child's scratched knee could once again kill."

The dearth of effective antibiotics could also make surgical procedures and certain cancer treatments risky or even impossible, Chan said.

"Some sophisticated interventions, like hip replacements, organ transplants, cancer chemotherapy and care of preterm infants, would become far more difficult or even too dangerous to undertake," she said.

The development of new antibiotics now could help stave off catastrophe later. But few drug makers are willing to invest in drugs designed for short term use.

"It's simply not profitable for them," said Dr. William Schaffner, chairman of preventive medicine at Vanderbilt University Medical Center in Nashville. "If you create a new drug to red cholesterol, people will be taking that drug every day for the rest of their lives. But you only take antibiotics for a week or maybe 10 days."

Schaffner likened the dilemma to Ford releasing a car that could only be driven if every other vehicle wasn't working.

"While we try to encourage the pharmaceutical industry to create new antibiotics, we have to be very prudent in their use," he said.

But there are ways to limit the potential for bacteria to develop antibiotic resistance: Use antibiotics appropriately and only when needed; follow treatment correctly; and restrict the use of antibiotics in food production to therapeutic purposes.

"At a time of multiple calamities in the world, we cannot allow the loss of essential antimicrobials, essential cures for many millions of people, to become the next global crisis," said Chan.

http://news.yahoo.com/blogs/abc-blogs/antibiotic-resistance-could-bring-end-modern-medicine-150406532--abc-news.html;_ylt=AqWJ_31RT2zKHcSkT11MYzK1qHQA;_ylu=X3oDMTRvNGJjZGdhBGNjb2RlA2dtcHRvcDEwMDBwb29sd2lraXVwcmVzdARtaXQDTmV3cyBmb3IgeW91BHBrZwNiZWNkNjMyZi1iNjkxLTM3ZGQtYTEyNy04YmQ3ZjAxMTNjMTAEcG9zAzgEc2VjA25ld3NfZm9yX3lvdQR2ZXIDNzUzNzMwYjAtNmY3YS0xMWUxLWJkODktZmQzOTQzZjMzZTcy;_ylg=X3oDMTJwMG9wb3BoBGludGwDdXMEbGFuZwNlbi11cwRwc3RhaWQDYjlhNjUyYzctZGM3Yy0zYzc4LTgwMGItNThmOTk1ZWIxZWY1BHBzdGNhdAMEcHQDc3RvcnlwYWdlBHRlc3QD;_ylv=3

In US, sickness from imported foods on the rise

People in the United States are getting sick more often from imported foods in recent years, and seafoods and spices from Asia are the most common culprits, US health authorities said Wednesday.

After reviewing cases of reported outbreaks from 2005 to 2010, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found that 2,348 illnesses were linked to imported foods, with half of the cases occurring in 2009 and 2010.

Fish-linked outbreaks were the most common source and nearly 45 percent of all imported foods causing sickness came from Asia, said the CDC report, presented at the International Conference on Emerging Infectious Diseases in Atlanta, Georgia.

Fish caused 17 of the 39 outbreaks, and spices were the next most common with six outbreaks, including five linked to fresh or dried peppers.

"As our food supply becomes more global, people are eating foods from all over the world, potentially exposing them to germs from all corners of the world, too," said lead author Hannah Gould, an epidemiologist in CDC's division of foodborne, waterborne and environmental diseases.

"We saw an increased number of outbreaks due to imported foods during recent years, and more types of foods from more countries causing outbreaks."

US food imports have grown from $41 billion annually in 1998 to $78 billion in 2007, according to the US Department of Agriculture.

Up to 16 percent of all food eaten -- and 85 percent of all seafood -- in the United States is imported.

However, officials suspect that there are more food-linked outbreaks than reported because often people are unaware of what has made them ill.

"We need better -- and more -- information about what foods are causing outbreaks and where those foods are coming from," Gould said in a statement.

"Knowing more about what is making people sick, will help focus prevention efforts on those foods that pose a higher risk of causing illness."

Some 48 million illnesses from food strike the United States each year, with the stomach-ailment causing norovirus being the most common followed by salmonella.

According to the latest data for 2008, there were a total of 23,152 sicknesses that year and 22 deaths.

The CDC defines a foodborne disease outbreak as two or more similar illnesses resulting from the same type of food.

http://news.yahoo.com/us-sickness-imported-foods-rise-195525616.html

Is Ground Beef the Most Dangerous Meat to Eat?

By

Rachel Grumman Bende

The answer may be yes. Find out why eating ground beef is risky—and how to protect yourself and your family.

Thinkstock

When you sink your teeth into a juicy, tasty burger, the last thing on your mind is that you could be taking your life in your hands. But as it turns out, you may be playing Russian roulette with your health every time you take a bite.

That’s because the ground beef that makes up food favorites like hamburgers and meatballs can contain potentially deadly bacteria, such as E.coli (particularly Escherichia coli O157:H7), as well asSalmonella, Campylobacter jejuni, Listeria monocytogenes and Staphylococcus aureus—all of which can cause serious illness, especially if you’re very young, very old or have a compromised immune system.

An E-coli infection can bring on abdominal cramping, diarrhea (or bloody diarrhea), kidney failure and even death, while the Salmonella health risks include diarrhea, vomiting, fever and nausea, according to nutritionist Keri Glassman, author of “The O2 Diet: The Cutting Edge Antioxidant-Based Program That Will Make You Healthy, Thin, and Beautiful.” Not exactly what you’d call “good times.”

What’s more, “you can’t eye food-borne illness—you can’t see it or smell it,” says Dawn Undurraga, a nutritionist with the nonprofit Environmental Working Group. “And it only takes a little bit of E.coli to make people very sick.”

But the fact that eating ground beef can be a gamble shouldn’t come as a surprise. The news frequently reports recalls of ground beef tainted with E.coli. Just last month, Tyson Fresh Meats recalled more than 131,000 pounds of ground beef after a family in Ohio got sick from eating the manufacturer’s beef, which tested positive for E. coli O157:H7.

All four children in the family fell ill, including a nine-year-old with severe diarrhea who was hospitalized for 10 days.

So why is ground beef particularly problematic? Part of the reason is because of where it comes from. What few people realize is that hamburgers are basically made from meat mash-ups.

“Ground beef is not the meat of a single cow,” explains Caroline Smith DeWaal, director of food safety at the Center for Science in the Public Interest in Washington, D.C. “Many consumers have the mistaken impression that it comes from a single animal. The way meat is produced today, a single burger can contain meat from 12 to 20 animals.”

And sometimes the ground beef comes from animals in different parts of the world in order to get the right mix of lean and fat meat. “What that means is the risks that we’re exposed to are not just risks from a single animal and what the animal itself was exposed to, but rather different hazards coming from different areas of the country or different parts of the world,” continues DeWaal.

Adds Glassman, “The parts of the cow used for low-grade meats are the areas that are most likely to be contaminated with feces. The meat companies do not test for E-coli O157:H7 when the ingredients are separate; they only check for E-coli when the meat is ground all together.”

So by comparison, opting for steak may be the healthier choice, at least in regards to bacteria exposure (what red meat does to your heart is another story). According to the USDA, when beef is ground, more of the meat is exposed to harmful bacteria. “While a steak might be cooked thoroughly or seared on the outside where pathogens would be, with ground beef the outside and inside of the meat have been mixed up,” says DeWaal. “If you have E.coli on the outside, it can get on the inside.”

How to Eat Meat Safely

The good news is that the USDA recently announced that it will be stepping up its efforts in the battle against beef-borne bacteria. Starting in March 2012, the department will expand its E. coli testing program for raw beef beyond the dangerous O157:H7 strain to search for six other potentially deadly strains of E. coli.

In the meantime, if you choose to chow down on a burger, there are steps you can take to protect yourself. When it comes to ground beef, the two biggest threats to your health are cross-contamination and undercooking. So cleanliness and cooking meat thoroughly are key to protecting your health.

“We urge consumers to be very cautious in handling any meat products,” says DeWaal. “Bacteria can be spread around the kitchen while handling raw meat. Anything the raw beef touches whether a plate, chopping board or utensils need to be scrubbed with soapy water or put in the dishwasher before it’s used on any food product.”

Another way to guard against dangerous bacteria is to make sure you cook ground beef thoroughly by using an instant read meat thermometer. You can pick one up at Brookstone or at supermarkets, which sell instant disposable thermometers near where meats are sold. “Check your meat in a couple of difference places to make sure it’s thoroughly cooked,” suggests DeWaal.

But is it risky to order meatballs or a burger when you’re at a restaurant? “It depends on the restaurant,” says DeWaal. “A number of fast food chains have recognized the real risk to their brands and have developed foolproof systems for cooking hamburgers. Since the Jack in the Box outbreak”—in 1993, four children died and many became ill after eating E.coli infected beef at the fast food chain—“fast food restaurants have put a lot of safety into their practices, but not every restaurant follows those practices.”

Your safest bet? Make your meatballs and hamburgers at home. Or if you’re ordering take-out or eating a restaurant, have your meat cooked “well done.”

Here are more surefire ways to safeguard your health when eating meat:

Heat things up. Cook the meat at a high enough temperature—160 degrees—to kill all pathogens. “That’s the only real way to know you’ve killed E.coli,” says Undurraga.

Divide and conquer. Separate the meat from other foods in the fridge and store it on the bottom shelf to prevent cross-contamination, suggests Glassman. Also, use different cutting boards and utensils for meats versus vegetables.

Stay in the clear. When cooking the ground beef, it should no longer be pink. “The juices should be clear,” says Glassman.

Give meat the big chill. Make sure you’re storing meat at the proper temperature—40 degrees or below. “E.coli can grow if the temperature is higher than 40 degrees—that’s the temperature danger zone,” says Undurraga. According to the USDA, once E.coli gets in food, the bacteria can multiply very slowly at temperatures as low as 44 degrees.

Defrost carefully. Always thaw meat by moving it from the freezer to the fridge or by using the defrost setting on your microwave. “Don’t leave it out on the counter to thaw,” says Undurraga.

Toss meat that’s past its prime. According to FoodSafety.gov, you should refrigerate raw ground meats, all poultry and seafood for one to two days; refrigerated raw roasts, steaks and chops (beef, veal, lamb, and pork) can last three to five days; and you can keep cooked meat, poultry and seafood in the fridge three to four days.

Of course the best way to protect yourself is to give it up altogether!

http://www.youbeauty.com/health/is-ground-beef-the-most-dangerous-meat-to-eat