Study ranks food pathogens by cost to society

April 28, 2011

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A report released today identifies the Top 10 riskiest combinations of

foods and disease-causing bugs, a finding that will help the FDA, USDA

and other agencies do a better job when it comes to keeping the nation's

food supply safe.

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Study ranks food pathogens by cost to society

By Lyndsey Layton, Thursday, April 28, 12:01 AM

iety/2011/04/27/AFPLWK2E_story.html

Of the food pathogens that cost society the most money --- in terms of

medical care, lost days of work, long-term chronic health problems or

deaths --- half are found in poultry, pork, beef and other meat

products, according to a study due for release Thursday.

For the first time, researchers used federal data on food-borne

illnesses to link the pathogens --- bacteria, viruses or parasites ---

and the foods that most often carry them and then ranked them according

to the financial burden they place on society.

" We tend to think of food-borne disease as 24 hours of diarrhea and it's

over, " said J. Glenn , the director of the Emerging Pathogens

Institute at the University of Florida and one of the authors of the

study. " What this shows is that there are diseases that have significant

other manifestations, that result in complications, even death. And as a

result, the public health burden is so much greater. " ...

While relatively few people get ill from toxoplasma compared with more

common bacteria such as salmonella, when a pregnant woman is sickened,

the results can be devastating in terms of lifelong disability for her

baby or even loss of the fetus, said...

iety/2011/04/27/AFPLWK2E_story.html

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