Investigating the listeriosis outbreak in South Africa
The Department of Health has announced that South Africa has an outbreak of the food-borne disease listeriosis.
I managed to speak to Dr Juno Thomas, Head of The Centre of Enteric Diseases at the National Institute of Communicable Diseases, and here's what she had to say about the issue:
Listeriosis is the name of a bacteria found in soil, water, and some animals, including poultry and cattle. It can be present in raw milk and foods made from raw milk. It can also live in food processing plants and contaminate a variety of processed meats.
Read: 36 dead in SA outbreak of food borne disease
According to Times Live, a total of 557 cases (in previous years there were only 60 - 80) have been reported this year alone and Health Minister Aaron Motsoaledi said the disease had resulted in 36 deaths.
Here are the four possible sources of the disease:
- Where food is collected‚ e.g. farms
- Food processing plants
- Retail stores
- Food preparation at home
It's clear from these sources that we need to be more vigilant about where we get our food products from and how we treat them before consuming.
People who have the disease may experience the following symptoms; flu-like illness‚ diarrhoea accompanied by a fever‚ general body pains‚ vomiting, and weakness.
You are encouraged to consult a physician if you experience any of these symptoms to avoid extreme cases of infection of the bloodstream‚ or septiceamia and meningitis.
Read: Makhura: Health in Gauteng needs complete overhaul
Those that are most at risk are pregnant women, the elderly or individuals with a weakened immune system.
How can you prevent infection:
- Wash your hands before handling food and during food preparation.
- Separate raw food from cooked food.
- Cook food thoroughly and never eating half-cooked or uncooked food‚ especially meat products. Food that does not need cooking needs to be thoroughly washed with clean water.
- Keep food at safe temperatures.
- Use clean water for domestic use at all times and use pasteurised milk products.
The disease is avoidable and treatable with antibiotics.