1. Salmonella enteritidis
2. Salmonella typhimurium
3. Salmonella choleraesuis
4. Salmonella typhi

Many discussions have taken place till today to enlighten and spread awareness of these types of Salmonella bacteria and on how to effectively avoid them.  The diseases and side effects of these can be avoided easily.

Salmonella Enteritidis

This is an infection that is caused by Salmonella Enterica, the rod-shaped aerobic bacteria.  This is an egg-associated bacterial disease and can be easily caused by eating raw eggs.  These bacteria are generally present in the egg.

Causes

Salmonella Enteritidis is caused by eating raw of half boiled eggs.  This is the most common bacteria and is infected to the hens through their intestines and even before the egg shell is formed, the bacteria affect the egg yolk.  This infection can be caused while picking the poultry products also.  This can be transmitted through contamination of soil or water also.

Symptoms

The most common symptoms found on infection of Salmonella Enteritidis are fevers, abdominal pains or cramps, diarrhea, chronic digestive disorders and gastroenteritis.  Some undiagnosed diseases or conditions include irritable bowel syndrome, inflammatory bowel disease, ulcerative colitis, celiac disease, heartburn, GERD and Pancreatitis.

Prevention

These are some of the effective measures to avoid Salmonella Enteritidis.  Following these closely reduces the risks of the bacteria.

• Avoid eating raw eggs or homemade ice creams or cakes baked using raw eggs.
• Do not eat stored foods made of eggs, eat them when hot.
• Properly wash your hands after gardening or shopping poultry products before you make contact with your face.
• Avoid eating undercooked egg food outside or at restaurants as these may contain the bacteria.

Salmonella Typhimurium

This is non-lactose fermenting medium sized rod-shaped bacteria that cause food poisoning.  These bacteria infect all animals and humans.  These are generally resistant to the commonly used antibiotics like ampicillin, streptomycin and tetracyclines.

Causes

This is spread by unhygienic conditions, stagnant water, improperly washing the dishes, raw meat, dirty food habits, and also through pets.

Symptoms

Diseases like pericarditis, hemolytic uremic syndrome, abdominal cramping, muscle aches, fever, etc are caused by these types of bacteria.

Prevention

You can avoid symptoms and diseases caused by salmonella Typhimurium and can also significantly reduce the risks induced by these bacteria by following these steps:

• Always clean your hands after gardening or playing with pets.
• Always maintain healthy and hygienic conditions at home.
• Never eat uncooked or raw fruits and vegetables without properly washing them.
• Never expose raw meat to open environment and always properly cook the poultry or cattle meat to eat.

Salmonella Choleraesuis

This is a Salmonella genus bacterium, which is motile and aerobic and is in the type of gram negative rod and comes from the family of Enterobacteriaceae.  This is also present worldwide and mostly found in pigs.

Causes

This is usually transmitted through animal feeds to animals and upon consumption of infected animal meat to humans.  This is also environment related and is caused due to unhygienic surroundings.

Symptoms

Diseases like nausea, diarrhea, abdominal cramping, septicemia, osteomyelitis and meningitis are caused by Salmonella Choleraesuis.

Prevention

Following are the things you need to do to effectively avoid and reduce the risks of Salmonella choleraesuis.

• Avoid taking contaminated food like animal meat without properly cooking and cleaning.
• Cleaning your garbage and disposing the garbage regularly can avoid from this infection.
• Keeping and maintaining healthy and hygienic environment and surroundings also reduces the risk of infection from these types of bacteria.

Salmonella Typhi

This is a gram-negative enteric bacillus and also originates from the family of Salmonella.  When compared to other salmonella group this is a rather new bacteria.  It is generally bred in humans and can be mostly found in developing countries and places unhygienic.

Causes

Unhealthy food, improper sanitation, contaminated water are the common causes of these bacteria.  These are also spread through environment.

Symptoms

Typhoid fever is the most common cause of these bacteria and other diseases are loss of appetite, severe headache and nausea.  This is the most dangerous type of Salmonella Bacteria and can mostly cause death.

Prevention

One can easily and effectively avoid these bacteria using the following steps:

• Drink only thoroughly processed and boiled water.
• Eat only properly cooked and cleaned foods.
• Maintain healthy and hygienic surroundings with proper sanitation.

Conclusion

These are the most dangerous types of Salmonella.  Most of these infections cause death when not properly diagnosed and treated.  To avoid being infected please follow the above mentioned instructions for a proper and healthy lifestyle.

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Facts about Salmonella related diseases

As per official records of the World Health Organization, the number of cases of Salmonella infection every year around the world exceeds 15 million. This is a major reason of death due to infection of typhoid fever. Over fifty thousand individuals around the globe lose their lives after getting affected by it. Countries like Germany and USA report thousands of cases annually.

Salmonella Symptoms

Salmonella causes a number of fatal or near fatal diseases such as gastroenteritis, diarrhea and typhoid. Below are provided some salmonella symptoms of each of these diseases.

1. Gastroenteritis: This is caused by consumption of meat and various poultry products such as chicken and eggs etc which have not been cooked properly. Salmonella present in such food items doesn’t get destroyed if these are not cooked properly before eating. Thus, the bacteria may enter the human body and can cause this disease. Salmonella Symptoms due to this disease are vomiting, pain in the abdomen, fever, headache and stool accompanied with blood.

When a child gets infected with this disease, he or she may become lethargic and you may notice lack of sleep in him or her. Further, fever and dehydration in such a child are common along with discoloration of skin, dark spots under the eyes etc. These may be accompanied by disruption in the transportation of nutrition by the blood and in extreme cases, it may cause death. This is because various body processes start ceasing along with suppression of volume of urine.

2. Typhoid: Typhoid is caused by a variety “Salmonella Typhi” of the bacteria Salmonella. This is prevalent around the world and its major reason is consumption of infected food or water. The onset of this disease is separated into four different stages and the symptoms of each stage are different and more intense from those of the earlier stage. The first stage is characterized by a fever, which rises continuously, along with headache, cough, continuous flow of blood from nose and reduction in white blood cell count in the body. In the second stage, the fever becomes constant at around 104 degrees Fahrenheit and an erratic pulse. These symptoms are generally accompanied by red spots on the chest along with diarrhea. While constipation is seen in some cases, increase in frequency of stools is also possible. If the fever rises in the afternoon and subsides later on, it can be a sign of typhoid.

During the third week, the Salmonella Symptoms become more prominent. For example, the fever remains at high level. This may even lead to severe dehydration and internal bleeding in the intestines can also occur. Death may occur in case of onset of perforation of intestine. This stage of typhoid is the most dangerous as most deaths occur during it. The salmonella symptoms start subsiding during the fourth stage and the fever may start getting reduced.

3. Reactive arthritis or Reiter’s syndrome is a less prevalent form of Salmonella infection. In this disease, the symptoms include inflammation of the joints. There is a severe irritation in the eyes and various complications in the urinary tract. The patient’s joints such as knees and ankles are affected by this syndrome. It is also possible that permanent problems such as development of a bone type structure in the heels. This results in pain which may last long time.

This syndrome may affect the organs in the urogenital tract including the penis and prostrate (men) and vagina and uterus (women). This may lead to increase in urination and a sense of burning while passing the urine. Another problem may set in men, which is known as prostatitis and is characterized by fever and a lasting chilling sensation.

4. Diarrhea: This is a condition in which the patient experiences loose motions. Salmonella symptoms due to it include rapid loss of essential fluids in the body and it can even cause death. This is because it leads to dehydration and disturbance in balance of electrolytes in the body. It is characterized by intensive pain in the abdomen along with vomiting. The stools may be liquid due to excessive water in the bowels.

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Steps for Salmonella Prevention

1. Maintain healthy and hygienic surroundings.
2. Wash your hands properly after playing with your pets.
3. Always drink chlorine treated bacteria free water.
4. Processing, cooking and consuming raw eggs or poultry must be according to doctor’s recommendations.
5. Processing, cooking and consuming raw meat must be according to doctor’s recommendations.
6. Processing and consuming fruits and raw vegetables must be according to doctor’s recommendations.
7. Contamination and cross-contamination of foods should be avoided.
8. Maintain hygienic kitchen and thorough cleaning of utensils.

Maintain healthy and hygienic surroundings

Maintaining clean and healthy environment of your surroundings is a key.  Never allow surface water storage as stored surface water carries these bacteria.  Always properly dispose your garbage and see that litter and garbage are timely recycled.

Wash your hands properly after playing with your pets

Generally animals and pets are the most common carriers of Salmonella.  In order to prevent being infected wash your hands properly after playing with your pets and after coming in contact with animals like turtles, snakes and pigs.  Wash your hands thoroughly even after gardening.

Always drink chlorine treated bacteria free water

Salmonella can live in dry environment and also in water.  These can be removed from water only after treating the water by chlorine and proper boiling as these bacteria cannot be harmed at room temperatures.  Never drink stored water in open air as this water can be contaminated due to bacteria present in the air.

Processing, cooking and consuming raw eggs or poultry

Hens carry these bacteria through their intestines and even before the formation of outer shell of the eggs, the Salmonella bacteria can be present inside.  So, never eat raw eggs – eat only thoroughly cooked eggs.  Wash your hands properly after processing and cooking raw eggs.  Clean the knives, kitchen boards and dishes thoroughly after processing raw poultry and consume only properly cooked poultry.

Processing, cooking and consuming raw meat

When processing raw meat you need to be careful with defrosting and cleaning raw meat.  Raw meat sometimes carries Salmonella bacteria and consumption of raw meat or uncooked meat will cause these bacterial infections.  Properly wash and clean the dishes and kitchen boards, knives and platform with soap and hot water and also clean your hands thoroughly with hot water to avoid being infected by these bacteria.

Processing, cooking and consuming fruits and raw vegetables

Fruits and raw vegetables may carry these bacteria and consuming these fruits directly without proper cleaning and consuming raw vegetables can cause Salmonella infection.

Contamination and cross-contamination of foods should be avoided

After processing, cooking and consuming please dispense thoroughly the leftovers of food and make sure to dispense the garbage to avoid contamination of food.  Generally, people tend to keep the cooked and uncooked or raw foods together for refrigeration.  This is very harmful as raw meat may consists of Salmonella and cross-contamination of food usually occurs here.  Even while shopping people tend to carry raw meat and fruits and vegetables together – this is also harmful.  Please carry these separately to avoid cross-contamination.

Maintain hygienic kitchen and thorough cleaning of utensils

Regular and proper cleaning of kitchen and its utensils is highly recommended for avoiding Salmonella infections.  Generally, these are foodborne infections and can live and breed at room temperatures.  Clean all the kitchen utensils after preparing your food with hot water to kill these bacteria.  Store all the food products properly to avoid these bacterial infections.

Apart from all these instructions, for prevention of Salmonella, government and public health authorities should educate people working in food processing units and restaurants and also ensure that these organizations follow cleanliness.  Humans once affected with these bacterial infections, should avoid cooking and serving food and water and other products until they are cured from these infections.  If any affected cases are found, then public awareness should be spread and necessitative steps should be taken to avoid spreading of these bacterial infections.

Extreme care should be taken in case of infants and elderly people as the immunization levels are very low for these types.  Awareness of these should be spread among pregnant women as they need to be more careful to avoid any harm for the baby and for themselves as their immunity levels are also low.

Conclusion

Till date there is no vaccine created or found and researchers are still trying to develop vaccines for all these various types of bacterial infections.  As you might have heard the saying “prevention is better than cure,” the best way to avoid salmonella infection is prevention.

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Salmonella bacteria are found around the globe and cause infection in humans due to various reasons. In fact, millions of people across the world get affected due to its infection in various forms. Its infection is so much prevalent in Europe and USA that around 1, 000,000 people get affected from this infection here. In fact, Germany is very badly affected by it. Here, it is mandatory to report infection due to Salmonella. Approximately 500,000 people die around the globe every year due to various forms of infection caused by Salmonella. The below information on salmonella causes can be used to check out how you can prevent the outbreak of the disease in your locality and help the individuals who can be at risk of catching it.

Understanding how can one get Salmonella

There are many ways in which an individual can catch Salmonella. It might be either due to consuming infected food or coming in contact with a carrier which might be human or an animal. Due to its property of being “carried” by a host, it has earned the euphemism of being a traveler’s disease. Further, there is difference in form of infection in different parts of the world. For example, people living in countries tagged as developing usually catch it due to food or water which comes in contact with feces of the infected person. However, individuals in the developed world may catch it by consuming poorly cooked food items. Salmonella causes need to be known by general public in order to make efforts to prevent outbreak of this deadly disease.

How can one get Salmonella

There are number of ways in which this infection can spread. Some are improper sanitation, consumption of infected food and rodents. This information can be useful in case you need to prevent yourself from getting affected by this infection:

1. Absence of proper sanitation facilities: Due to the absence of proper toilets and sanitation facilities in poor countries, people tend to excrete in open, either in fields or near water sources such as ponds. In such cases, the human excreta can come in contact with these water sources. Those individuals who use the water from such sources for preparation of their food or drinking can get infected from it. Sometimes, outbreaks of Salmonella induced gastroenteritis, diarrhea are reported at such places.

2. Consumption of vegetables prepared from infected water: When vegetable cultivation is done with the help of polluted water, the Salmonella present in it can get transported to the vegetable crops. When such vegetables are consumed in raw form by different individuals, they may catch this infection. Further, if these vegetables are prepared without proper cooking, Salmonella can enter the body of the individual who consumes them.

3. Consumption of infected animals: Sometimes, poultry or cattle can be carriers of Salmonella. In case these are not cooked properly at recommended temperatures, the Salmonella virus present in them can get transferred to humans. In case their numbers reach a critical level, an individual who consumes them might get infected.

It is advised to cook food at 55 degrees Celsius for at least an hour so that the Salmonella bacteria are eliminated. Further, cooking the food at 75 degrees for over ten minutes can eliminate the bacteria completely. However, Salmonella doesn’t die on cooling. In fact, it doesn’t die even at freezing. So, heating is the only way to remove the bacteria and in turn, the chances of infection.

4. Consumption of food products derived from infected animals: It is quite possible that we consume such food items which have been derived from the infected animals such as milk and eggs. We can catch the infection if we don’t process these food items properly before consumption. In order to prevent it, you need to heat the various food products properly so as to kill the Salmonella bacteria, as described above.

5. Indirect infection from animals: It is also possible that the Salmonella bacteria gets carried with the pets such as rabbits or animals such as lizards which can carry the bacteria and when they come into contact your food, they can transfer the bacteria causing infection. In order to prevent this form of infection, it is necessary that you protect your food from coming into contact with these animals either directly or indirectly.

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What is Salmonella

This is a rod-shaped species that is mainly motile and a non-spore forming enterobacteria and flagella, which develop in all directions using the reactions of oxidation and reduction using organic sources for their energy.  Most types of Salmonella generate hydrogen sulfide that can be found by growing these on any medium containing ferrous sulfate such as TSI.

Most types or segregates survive in two phases:

1. A motile phase I.
2. A nonmotile phase II.

Generally speaking, Salmonella is just a bacterium that is found worldwide in cold and warm blooded animals and humans and also in the environment.  This bacterium does cause harm and the most common illnesses include:

1. Typhoid Fever.
2. Paratyphoid Fever.
3. Salmonellosis (Foodborne disease or illness).

Causes or Sources of Salmonella

Salmonella infection is caused mainly by food contamination and food poisoning and also by inhaling bacterium rich dust.  These affect the digestive system causing gastroenteritis, abdominal pain, diarrhea and sometimes blood vomiting.  Excretions/emissions or secretions of infected or animals are also a source of Salmonella.  Unhygienic environment and stored surface water also can cause these bacteria to affect humans.   This is also generally found in raw meat and raw eggs.  Cattle and sheep are also the carriers of these bacteria.  Raw fruits and vegetables can also be considered as sources of these bacteria.

Infections and Risks

Salmonella virus cause intestinal infections as these are mostly foodborne diseases and generally do not affect a healthy adult.  They need to be in very huge quantity to affect an adult.  In case of infants, elders and pregnant women Salmonella has adverse reactions.  Very little quantity of bacteria is enough to cause severe and serious damage to both mother and fetus.  There are many side effects and complications caused by these bacteria if they affect children and elderly people and pregnant women.

Salmonella Affecting Pregnancy

These bacteria have very serious affects on pregnancy.  Consuming improperly cooked food or contaminated foods during pregnancy result in adverse reactions.  Salmonella can literally survive in any environment and especially in stored foods.  The food poisoning that is caused by these bacteria is very severe.  Pregnant women have low body immunizations levels.  Thus the food poisoning may affect much easily these patients.

Salmonella Induced by Food Intake during Pregnancy

Salmonella bacteria can be easily induced into the body by food products.  Here are some necessary steps to be followed for proper intake of food during pregnancy.

• One needs to be careful when eating raw fruits or vegetables as they carry these bacteria and consumption of these without proper washing and cleaning can lead to diarrhea, vomiting, fever, headache and shivering.
• Consuming raw meat or raw eggs without proper boiling or cooking can also lead to various diseases and accumulation of the Salmonella bacteria that are particularly dangerous for pregnant women.
• During pregnancy, eating ice creams, cakes, cookies and baked foods should be carefully chosen or avoided as these carry the bacteria.
• Avoid eating raw milk or milk products like desserts, cheese, etc when pregnant as they might carry the bacteria.
• Sea products are also the known carriers of these bacteria, so avoid all types of strange and untrusted sea foods during Pregnancy as consumption of these can cause rashes and hives due to these bacteria.

Environmental Hygiene to Avoid Salmonella during Pregnancy

These are some necessitating steps to be closely followed to avoid being affected by Salmonella during Pregnancy.

1. Maintain cleanliness of your surroundings and avoid any storage of surface water and dispense the garbage in a garbage can and see that this is recycled daily to avoid accumulation and breeding of these bacteria.
2. Avoid interacting with your pets as these are also the carriers of Salmonella and clean yourself properly and thoroughly upon contact with the pets.
3. In case you indulge in gardening during pregnancy, use gloves and also thoroughly wash your hands and legs as they can also carry these bacteria.
4. You should also maintain safety and hygiene in your kitchen mainly and clean all the utensils with hot soapy water to avoid these bacteria before and after cooking.

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Causes of Salmonella food poisoning

Salmonella food poisoning is caused by a number of reasons which include consumption of affected food items. Further, a carrier such as a rodent or a pet might carry this disease this disease as well. Some reasons are presented below with detailed analysis of all of them along with ways of prevention.

1. Consumption of infected food: Salmonella bacteria can be present in various animals such as cattle, pigs and poultry. When these are cooked at 55 degrees Celsius for over an hour, the bacteria start getting removed. However, the bacteria are removed completely when these food items are cooked at around 75 degrees for around ten minutes so as to ensure complete removal of the bacteria. In case the food is not cooked for this duration, some traces of Salmonella can be left behind. It is quite possible that such a small amount may not be harmful, but in case anyone with feeble immune system consumes them, he or she can get affected. Moreover, children have underdeveloped immune system and they can get catch Salmonella food poisoning easily even without presence of a heavy Salmonella content in the food. Moreover, immune system can also become weak in elderly people and those who might be suffering from AIDS. In order to remove any trace of Salmonella in the food, you need to cook your food properly with the above specified methods.

It is also possible that fruits and vegetables prepared from infected water become carriers of this disease. In poor countries, this is a practice to irrigate fields with polluted water. This polluted water might also contain Salmonella which can cause infection in the individuals who consume them. Sometimes, vegetables such as cabbage are eaten in raw form in salads. If such cabbage is infected with Salmonella, Salmonella food poisoning might occur in the individual who consumes it.

2. Consumption of infected food products derived from infected animals: There are many food products which are derived from cattle and poultry. These include eggs and milk. In case these food products are not treated well, the individual who consumes them might catch this form of food poisoning. Thus, it is very important that you treat such food products well before consuming them. Further, it is necessary that you store them properly after treatment.

3. Contamination due to carriers: The Salmonella infection can be carried by a number of animals such as lizards and snakes etc. This is because these animals can carry the bacteria on their skins. Though you cannot prevent them to become infected, you can protect yourself, your family members and your food to come in direct of them. Similarly, pets such as rabbits can also become carriers of the disease. To prevent the infection from carried on to your food from your pets you must sanitize your pets properly at regular intervals.

Symptoms

A number of complications might occur due to the direct action of the bacteria. These complications include gastroenteritis, diarrhea, vomiting etc. Some individuals might also develop pink spots on chest along with headache. Other symptoms include reactive arthritis which triggers auto immunity i.e. immunity of the body against its own parts. In this condition, various complications such as pain in joints may set in. Further problem while passing urine may occur due to various diseases of the genitals. It may also lead to inflammation of eyes which causes impairment of vision.

Treatment

The treatment of food poisoning is usually done with the help of antibiotics. Antibiotics such as flouroquinolones are used in the treatment of infections caused by Salmonella. One such popular antibiotic is ciprofloxacin which is quite effective against this infection. However, it must be noted that enough care needs to be used during the treatment. This is because the flouroquinolones are extremely toxic and if consumed in excess, these can lead to various complications related to toxicity. Further, while treating the infected children, Cephalosporin needs to be given to them due to its lower level of toxicity.

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