Dysentery

[Skittl1321]

Chickens in the U.S. spread salmonella infections rampantly because of the way they are kept - in very close quarters. That may or may not be the case in Mexico.

Salmonella is also more common in the US than most other countries because of the way the eggs are washed. Washing the protective coating of the egg can allow the bacteria to penetrate to the inside of the egg more easily. Most other countries, eggs are not washed until use. This is also one of the reasons the US is one of the few places where eggs are stored chilled. If the protectant coating is on the egg, they do not need to be chilled, and it is often discouraged because temperature changes can cause moisture on the egg which can encourage bacterial growth.


I think that it is mostly just a gamble if you are going to get sick in Cozumel. There is a lot of food prep safety violations going on. At the Sabor, the line cooks all wore gloves at the snack bar. They'd stick their gloved hand right into the bag of hamburger patties, to pick up a raw patty to slap on the grill, and then use those same gloved hands to grab chips out of the bag to prepare nachos. I'm thinking the gloves must have been there to protect them- because they certainly weren't protecting us. (Poor glove safety isn't uncommon in the US- for instance, a gloved Subway worker scratching his head and then forgetting to change his gloves- though this was more egregious than I've seen here.)

 

[ggunn]

This is anecdotal.

A few years ago there was a ban on the importation into the US of cascarones (confetti eggs) from Mexico because of some sort of pathogen in the shells. In May of that year my wife and I were in a Cozumel restaurant and she ordered a Caesar salad, which they prepared at the table and for which they brought a coddled (partially boiled) egg. During the prep the waiter dropped the egg, so he got another one from the kitchen which only stayed in the (by that time cooling) water for a few seconds.

That night she got violently ill, with extreme gastric distress and hallucinations. By noon she was better and by the next day she was fine.

Maybe it was a coincidence, maybe not.

 

[Festus]

I look at it like I’m getting a free service. Colon cleansings cost extra in the Spa.

 

[diver 85]

If people keep self medicating these other drugs are going to become resistant too.

Antibiotics HAVE to be taken in appropriate courses, usually well beyond when you feel better; and with the side effects of things like levo, people who prescribe them to themselves are likely to stop early.

Leave last resort antibiotics like levofloxacin to the people who TRULY need a last resort drug. Or we won't have any more antibiotics left for severe cases.

That's what 84th generations are for...

 

[JohnN]

Salmonella is also more common in the US than most other countries because of the way the eggs are washed. Washing the protective coating of the egg can allow the bacteria to penetrate to the inside of the egg more easily.

You should write the CDC and have them correct their information, clearly they are mistaken

You can get Salmonella from perfectly normal-looking eggs. Salmonella can live on both the outside and inside of eggs that appear to be normal. Chicken feces on the outside of egg shells used to be a common cause of Salmonella contamination. To counter that, regulators in the 1970s put strict procedures into place for cleaning and inspecting eggs. Now, Salmonella is sometimes found on the inside of eggs; it gets there as the egg is forming.

 

[olphart]

When all else fails, be ready with the "warhammer maneuver"

 

[cvchief]

Should I be worried about the chicken too? Which came first.....

 

[Skittl1321]

You should write the CDC and have them correct their information, clearly they are mistaken

The CDC information is simplified for presentation to a general audience. The vast majority of salmonella inside an egg does get there because it was passed from the mother, genetically.

But washing the protective coating off an egg DOES make it more susceptible to salmonella and other issues. That is why eggs in the US MUST be refrigerated, and they are not in other countries. Not refrigerating US eggs can cause serious health issues- if you do not refrigerate a washed egg, the stripping of the protective barrier allows bacteria to penetrate- if the food is mishandled. If it is refrigerated properly there is no problem. Pretty much everywhere else in the world, including highly developed countries, leave their eggs on the counter because there is no need for refrigeration.

Cooking the eggs properly is the only way to protect against bacteria inside of an egg, regardless of how it got there. But washing the eggs makes the chance of mishandling them greater.

 

[JohnN]

The CDC information is simplified for presentation to a general audience. The vast majority of salmonella inside an egg does get there because it was passed from the mother, genetically.

Genetically? Really?? Now you need to educate genomic scientists too. . . I'd love to hear your explanation of how this mechanism works.

FWIW, the leading suspect for Salmonella contamination inside the shell of chicken eggs, is the over application of antibiotics in the chicken feed resulting in contamination of the egg before it is "extruded". Again from the CDC

[h=4]Egg and chicken contamination[/h]Most types of Salmonella live in the intestinal tracts of animals and birds and are transmitted to humans when feces from animals directly or indirectly contaminate foods that humans eat. For example, if chicken feces get on the outside of the shell of eggs, Salmonella in the feces can contaminate the egg through cracks in the shell. This used to be a common problem. However, stringent procedures for cleaning and inspecting eggs were implemented in the 1970s and have made illness from Salmonellacaused by chicken feces on the outside of egg shells extremely rare. However, unlike Salmonellainfections from eggs in past decades, the epidemic that started in the 1980s and continues to cause illnesses today is due to SE being inside of intact grade A eggs with clean shells. The reason is that SE can silently infect the ovaries of healthy appearing hens and contaminate the inside of eggs before the shells are formed.
SE infection is present in hens in most areas in the United States. An estimated one in 20,000 eggs is internally contaminated. Only a small number of hens might be infected at any given time, and an infected hen can lay many normal eggs while only occasionally laying eggs contaminated with SE.
Chickens raised for meat, called broiler chickens, can also be contaminated with SE. During the period 2000–2005, as eating chicken emerged as a risk factor for SE infection, studies by the US Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (USDA-FSIS) found an average of one in eight sampled broiler chickens were contaminated with Salmonella, and of the Salmonella-positive chickens, one in 20 were contaminated with SE.

 

[DandyDon]

It had to happen I guess: 46th post has to mention the "warhammer maneuver."

This is anecdotal.

A few years ago there was a ban on the importation into the US of cascarones (confetti eggs) from Mexico because of some sort of pathogen in the shells. In May of that year my wife and I were in a Cozumel restaurant and she ordered a Caesar salad, which they prepared at the table and for which they brought a coddled (partially boiled) egg. During the prep the waiter dropped the egg, so he got another one from the kitchen which only stayed in the (by that time cooling) water for a few seconds.

That night she got violently ill, with extreme gastric distress and hallucinations. By noon she was better and by the next day she was fine.

Maybe it was a coincidence, maybe not.

I'd be afraid of a coddled anyway, even tho that's what one uses for an authentic Caesar egg I take it. Using a raw egg is scary. Glad she was only sick one night, but it sounds dreadful.

I'm no expert but I'd be surprised if washing an egg is what gets the pathogen inside it. I trust that Coz eggs are washed before taken to the grill, surely. I used to wash the eggs I gathered, then coat them in vegetable oil so they've save longer - duck eggs I stored in a closet for months. Factory eggs are washed, then coated with whatever they use. The free range eggs I get now are washed, but not coated so last only 4 weeks in the fridge before they start floating in a water test.