Escherichia coli or E. Coli for short, the sickness causing specter that creeps on your raw cookie dough parade. The dark cloud of consequences built in to incorrectly preparing food. E. coli. is a well known bacteria group that can cause serious gastrointestinal illnesses if they end up in the wrong part of the body. E. Coli do serve a purpose within the human body, as well as the bodies of some animals. They contribute to the body of bacteria that maintains our intestinal health. However, the issue arises when something that should remain in one's bowls or be exerted from the body entirely somehow makes its way into the early stages of digestion.
One of the ways in which E. Coli. enters the body is through contaminated food. In the case of meat, either the animal itself was contaminated or it was exposed to the bacteria during processing. The animal could also have eaten contaminated food creating a chain of contamination from its feed to our tables. In the case of, say, cookie dough, it is often the flour that is contaminated and this is a big reason why if you have a cookie dough addiction, you should always heat treat your flour before making it. You should also leave out the eggs if you know a batch of dough is going to see the inside of your stomach before the inside of an oven.
The E. coli. Family includes some of the deadliest bacteria we can ingest. Some produce a toxin called Shiga which can cause anything from stomach cramps and diarrhea to death. You might also experience fever, general nausea, vomiting and basically all the symptoms we generally associate with food poisoning. Some people may not realize that depending on the strain, you can begin to show symptoms as long as 9 days after a contamination. If you begin to have symptoms that resemble E.Coli poisoning, you should contact your doctor as soon as possible. Not only is it the best way to protect yourself but if there is a wider spread of contamination, you might save others who are more vulnerable than yourself. Bacterial infections are most dangerous for the elderly and very young, so it’s important to take special care when preparing food for either.
To reduce the risk of contamination at home, it is important to cook your food thoroughly and to wash your hands really well before preparing anything but especially raw food. As E. coli lives in the gut so not washing your hands well after using the bathroom can lead to your own personal outbreak of contamination. Also, make sure you clean up preparation areas after cooking raw foods, especially meat. If you suspect contamination, it is a good idea to take steps to sanitize anything that may have come into contact with the contaminated food.
Just this week, we’ve had multistate contamination of ground beef (Check In the News for more information). It’s a good idea to follow https://www.fsis.usda.gov/recalls to keep abreast of food recalls and press releases concerning domestic outbreaks of E. coli and other contaminants!
Resources:
https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/diseases/16638-e-coli-infection
FDA Page including information of sanitization
Mayo clinic: https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/e-coli/symptoms-causes/syc-20372058