Combatting Foodborne Diseases: Causes, Impact, and Prevention

Food contamination, a pervasive issue, can be caused by various agents, leading to over 250 different foodborne diseases. In the past two decades, foodborne diseases have surged as a significant public health and economic concern globally. In the United States, foodborne illness has reached epidemic levels, often misdiagnosed as intestinal flu. These diseases can damage the intestines, impairing nutrient absorption and weakening the immune system.

Most foodborne illnesses are infectious, caused by bacteria, viruses, and parasites. Bacterial pathogens account for approximately 66% of all foodborne illness outbreaks. Of the roughly 200 foodborne outbreaks reported annually, around 60% remain of undetermined etiology. Changes in agricultural practices contribute significantly to this issue. The primary cause of the rise in salmonellosis, a major foodborne disease, is the use of antibiotics in farm animals. Critics have long warned that antibiotic-resistant bacteria could be transmitted from animals to humans.

Several well-conducted studies have confirmed these fears, tracing human salmonellosis back to resistant bacteria in meat. This evidence underscores the urgent need for stricter regulations on antibiotic use in agriculture. The World Health Organization and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have highlighted the importance of addressing antibiotic resistance to safeguard public health.

To combat foodborne diseases, enhanced food safety practices, better agricultural regulations, and increased public awareness are essential. By addressing these issues, we can reduce the prevalence of foodborne illnesses and protect public health.
Combatting Foodborne Diseases: Causes, Impact, and Prevention

Foodborne viruses

Virus transmission can occur by the respiratory, fecal –oral and other routes. Foodborne viruses are an emerging food safety concern and represent a major cause of outbreaks of gastroenteritis. One of the reasons for this increased awareness is the improved laboratory capability to detect the groups of viruses causing gastroenteritis.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimate that each year there are 47.8 million episodes of foodborne illness and of those caused by known pathogens, 59% are caused by viruses.

Viruses need to enter living cells in order to replicate. Unlike bacteria, viruses cannot grow in food nor cause deterioration of the product.

Hepatitis A virus

Foodborne virus infection can be distinguished:
*Virus infections that cause gastroenteritis
*Virus infections that are enterically transmitted and cause hepatitis
*Virus infections that replicate in the human intestine but cause illness after they have been migrated to other organs.

Because foodborne virus infection may be asymptomatic, it is difficult to identify infected food handlers and separate them from food. Food handlers who appear healthy maybe be reservoirs of disease due to the long duration of asymptomatic shedding.

Heat represents the most efficient treatment to inactivate foodborne viruses and as a general rule, the higher the temperature, the higher and the faster the reduction in viral infectivity.
Foodborne viruses 

The effects of E. coli O157:H7 on human health

Escherichia coli O157:H7 was first identified as a human pathogen in 1982 and it was first isolated in cattle.

E. coli O157:H7 is one of hundreds of strains of the bacterium E. coli. Although most strains are harmless and live in the intestines of healthy humans and animals, this strain produces a powerful toxin and can cause severe illness.

A rare but dangerous type of E. coli, the strain O157:H7 is now a major public health problem worldwide.

Infection often causes severe bloody diarrhea and abdominal cramps; sometimes the infection causes non-bloody diarrhea. Frequently, no fever is present. It should be noted that these symptoms are common to a variety of diseases, and may be caused by sources other than contaminated drinking water.

In an estimated 4 percent of cases, E. coli O157:H7 produces shiga toxin that attacks the lining of the intestine and enters the blood stream, causing hemolytic uremic syndrome or HUS, which can lead to kidney failure, anemia, internal bleeding and other complication, including death.

In some people, particularly children under 5 years of age and the elderly, the infection can also cause a complication called hemolytic uremic syndrome, in which the red blood cells are destroyed and the kidneys fail.

The capacity of E. coli O157:H7 to cause disease is a direct result of its possession of a number of genetic elements for virulence factors. Due to the severity of O157:H7 infection, research into the virulence factors has been intense.

In the United States, hemolytic uremic syndrome is the principal cause of acute kidney failure in children, and most cases of hemolytic uremic syndrome are caused by E. coli O157:H7. Hemolytic uremic syndrome is a life-threatening condition usually treated in an intensive care unit. Blood transfusions and kidney dialysis are often required. With intensive care, the death rate for hemolytic uremic syndrome is 3%-5%.
The effects of E. coli O157:H7 on human health 

Foodborne Disease*

Food may become contaminated by a variety of different agents, resulting in over 250 different foodborne diseases.

Foodborne disease has emerged as an important and growing public health and economic problem in many countries during the last two decades.

Illness from foodborne disease has reached epidemic proportions in the United States, even though many cases are mistaken for intestinal flu.

It can damage the structure and function of the intestines, leading to malabsorption, and can weaken the body’s immune system.

Most foodborne diseases are infectious, caused by bacteria, viruses and parasites. Approximately 66% of all foodborne illness outbreaks are caused by bacterial pathogens. Of the 200 foodborne outbreaks reported each year, approximately 60% are of undetermined etiology.

Changed agricultural practices are part of the problem. Antibiotic use in farm animals is the primary cause of the increase in salmonellosis, now a major foodborne disease.

For years, critics warned that the resultant development of antibiotic-resistant bacteria could be followed by animal-to-human transmission. But cattlemen and agricultural officials demanded proof. Proof has now been supplied by several carefully conducted studies tracing human salmonellosis back to resistant bacteria in meat.

Foodborne illness is an important public health problem worldwide. In countries with poor sanitation conditions, diarrheal illness is a leading cause of mortality and malnutrition in young children.

Current food trends contribute to foodborne disease – fads such as steak tartare, marinated raw beef, undercooked goose liver, rare duck breasts, and, especially, undercooked or raw fish; the incidence of infections from the latter two is increasing in the United States.

All of these present serious health problems. Fish tapeworm infections have not been associated with properly canned commercial fish, but the larval parasite can survive up to 400 days in iced fish.

As a result of the increased global trade in food it is also likely outbreaks covering larger areas and affecting several countries will be recognized in larger numbers in the future.

Accurate estimates of the yearly incidence of foodborne disease are difficult and sometimes impossible depending on the reporting systems in different countries.
Foodborne Disease