Fox News reports that an outbreak of norovirus, which caused seven 13- and 14-year-old soccer players to become sick, has been traced back to a reusable grocery bag.  According to reporters, the team of girls traveled from their hometown of Beaverton, Oregon, to Seattle, Washington, for a soccer tournament.  The outbreak started on Saturday, the day of the tournament, when the first team member started feeling sick, experiencing symptoms like vomiting, diarrhea, and stomach cramps.  Symptoms that kept the poor girl in the bathroom for nearly six hours pointed to norovirus, and she was taken home.  Throughout the weekend, however, others also became sick.  By Monday, seven girls on the team had experienced similar norovirus symptoms.

During their investigation, Oregon scientists found traces of norovirus on the sides of a reusable grocery bag, located just below the handles.  Apparently, the girls had passed the contaminated bag, which was filled with cookies, around during meals that weekend.  Details of the research are now published in the Journal of Infectious Disease.

According to Fox News, “Norovirus causes 21 million illnesses, 70,000 hospitalizations, and 800 deaths a year in the United States.”  Although norovirus is more often passed from person to person, it can contaminate and survive on surfaces as well (take the grocery bag, in this instance).  So how can it be avoided?  As with so many foodborne illnesses, frequent hand-washing and thorough cleaning of contaminated surfaces is crucial.

–Aubrey Pontious

With recent awareness of celiac disease and gluten sensitivity, more and more people seem to be opting to live life gluten-free.  Sounds easy, right?  Just don’t eat gluten.  As simple as it sounds, though, cutting gluten out of your diet is extremely difficult.  This is because gluten is found in products like wheat, barley, rye, and oats—ingredients found in so much of what we eat.  The list of foods that contain gluten is probably inexhaustible (we’ve all seen packaging that says “may contain wheat,” right?) but includes breads, cakes, pies, candies, cereals, cookies, crackers, pastas, French fries, gravies, imitation and processed meats/seafood, salad dressing, soy sauce, potato chips, soups, vegetables in sauce, medications, vitamins, food additives…  Take out the foods that contain gluten, and what have you got left?  Do I hear crickets chirping?

You get the idea.

So what is celiac disease and why would somebody choose to go gluten-free?  Well, celiac disease is a genetic disorder.  This disorder affects 1 in 133 Americans, or 2.18 million people nation-wide, according to celiac.com.  The disease is exasperated by consuming gluten, which is a protein found in wheat, barley, rye, and oats, which causes damage to the lining of the small intestine.  Although symptoms of celiac disease can be somewhat mild, including weakness, bone pain, aphthous stomatitis (or canker sores), diarrhea, and abdominal bloating, the intestinal damage prevents necessary food absorption that may lead to more dangerous symptoms such as weight loss, nutrient deficiencies, and malnutrition.  Moreover, those who have celiac disease who continue to eat gluten increase their risk of gastrointestinal cancer up to 100 times.

These risks make it extremely important, therefore, for those who have celiac disease to exclude gluten from their diets all together.  Why eat gluten when it will make you sick, first off, and then increase your risk of cancer, right?  Then again, what is there to consume besides foods that contain gluten?  And what about the gluten-intolerant bread lover?  What is he to do?

Because there hasn’t been a great concentration on it in the past, the concept of gluten-free products has seemed to explode—in a good way—with recent awareness of this dietary need.  As diagnosis and awareness of celiac disease has risen, demand for gluten-free products has escalated along with it:

1. According to the US News & World Report, “15-25% of consumers report looking for gluten-free products.”
2. The National Restaurant Association (NRA) ranks “gluten-free” in 8^th place on their “What’s Hot” Top 20 Trends for 2011 list for food industry developments.
3. SPINS, a company that provides “quantifiable information on natural product industry sales,” reports that, in 2012, gluten-free sales reached $6.2 billion.

The great news is that many organizations and companies have responded positively to the high demand for gluten-free food, putting their efforts into making gluten-free baking ingredients, books, and even breads.   Among those who have responded is The National Foundation for Celiac Awareness (NFCA).  The NFCA not long ago created the GREAT Kitchens program, a gluten-free education and awareness training that helps restaurant employees to know how to offer gluten-free foods to their customers in a safe and effective way.

So although living with celiac disease or gluten sensitivity can be difficult—especially because gluten is difficult to avoid—the commitments of many to provide better gluten-free options make living with celiac disease not only possible but even pleasant.

–Aubrey Pontious

Sources: PubMed Health, Celiac.com, The GREAT Kitchens Program, SPINS.com, Wall Street Journal

Every good chef or cook keeps their knives sharp.  Sometimes, the knife cuts more than the food.  Well, what should a cook do if they are cut?  The first thing you should do is take care of the injury, discard what you were cutting, and sanitize the area.  Don’t play around with the idea that you may not have contaminated the food.  Blood can transmit all kinds of illnesses.  This is especially important if you are cooking in a restaurant.  Your customers are depending on you to serve them safe food.  If you do have a wound like a cut or burn on the hands, it needs to have an impermeable cover on it; meaning that no fluids including blood or pus can get through it.  Over the impermeable cover, a single-use disposable glove should be used.  Wounds on the arm need to also have an impermeable cover, but they do not need some sort of arm glove.  (Where can you score one of those?  Arm glove, that could be awesome.)  Other wounds on the body need a clean, tight fitting bandage.

I am reminded about a few episodes of the Food Network’s show, “Chopped.” In several different episodes, a competing chef, that’s right a chef, not justanyone gets on this show, cut themselves during the food preparation and not taken the time to clean up and take care of the situation properly.  The result was that none of the judges tasted the food and the chef was eliminated, and they lost out on $10,000.  Believe it or not, the risks for you are much higher when you calculate in losing your job, the restaurant’s reputation, the loss of revenue incurred, and most importantly, your customer’s health.  You cook because you love it.  Accidents happen.  Don’t be careless with food safety.  Make sure you handle all wounds properly.

Diamond Pet Foods has issued a recall of dry dog food manufactured in their Gaston, South Carolina production plant after the puppy chow was linked to an outbreak of human Salmonella Infantis infections.  So far, 14 individuals have reported being infected—5 of whom have been hospitalized. No dog illnesses have been reported. According to the FDA, “Salmonella can affect animals eating the products and there is risk to humans from handling contaminated pet products, especially if they have not thoroughly washed their hands after having contact with the products or any surfaces exposed to these products.”

The recalled Diamond Puppy Formula products were distributed in the following 12 states: Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Maryland, Michigan, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Virginia. For more information about the specific products being recalled, click here. In addition, several other brands of dog food manufactured for third parties are being recalled. Click here to see a consolidated list of recalled products.

The CDC issued some advice for consumers in regards to this recall:

• Consumers should check their homes for recalled dog food products and discard them promptly. Consumers with questions about recalled dog food may contact Diamond Pet Foods at (800)442-0402 or visit their website.
• Follow tips about handling dry dog food found here
• People who think they might have become ill after contact with dry pet food or with an animal that has eaten dry pet food should consult their health care providers. Infants, older adults, and persons with impaired immune systems are more likely than others to develop severe illness.
• People who think their animal might have become ill after eating dry pet food should consult their veterinary-care providers.

A case of bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE)—more commonly known as mad cow disease—was found yesterday in central California during a routine testing.  Mad cow disease notoriously killed 180,000 cows and 150 people in the UK in 1993, and yesterday’s incident is the fourth confirmed case in the US since 2003.  Cropping up more than six years after the blowout that caused the USDA to force Hallmark and Westland Meat Packing Company to recall 143, 383,823 pounds of beef, this case has raised some concern.

Fortunately, though, the US Department of Agriculture’s Chief Veterinarian John Clifford has reported that the cow’s meat did not enter the food chain: “There is really no concern for alarm here with regards to this animal.  Both human health and animal health are protected with regards to this issue.”  But despite the comfort that Clifford’s statement may bring, many have been reminded of past calamities.  Not only the dangers of mad cow disease, but also the fact that the disease is still present remains in the forefront of many minds.

According to the LA Times, Director of Communications for the California Cattlemen’s Association, Stevie Ispen, said, “This is a big deal.  People have a lot of fear over mad cow disease and for good reason…But our country’s meat is still the safest in the world.  We’re confident people will carry on eating beef.”  Also, according to the cattle ranchers, the fact that routine testing detected the presence of mad cow disease proves that “a sound screening system is in place.”

–Aubrey Pontious

Sources: LA Times, Marler Blog, The Inquisitr