Listeria Can Be Deadly

10:01 AM ET 01/13/00

Pregnant Women Warned of Risky Food

 Pregnant Women Warned of Risky Food
 By LAURAN NEERGAARD=
 AP Medical Writer=
 	   WASHINGTON (AP) _ It was only when Mary Lenkersdorf saw hospital
 records months later that she learned the cause of her miscarriage:
 A bacterium called listeria had spread through her body to her
 baby.
 	   So when the Florida woman got pregnant again, she wanted a list
 of listeria-prone foods so she could avoid the risk. However, two
 doctors she consulted couldn't tell her anything.
 	   ``They didn't know themselves what it was,'' said Lenkersdorf,
 who searched the Internet to discover that the Brie and cold cuts
 she loved actually can be high-risk foods during pregnancy. ``They
 should know about this. ... It's a preventible thing if you're
 informed.''
 	   A consumer advocacy group today began a campaign to let more
 women know there are precautions they need to take during pregnancy
 to avoid foods that could harm or even kill their developing baby.
 	   This information ``is widely known within public health circles,
 but it isn't widely known by physicians who treat pregnant women,
 or the women,'' said Caroline Smith deWaal of the Center for
 Science in the Public Interest, which is distributing free
 brochures explaining ``Healthy Eating for Pregnant Moms.''
 	   At issue actually are two infections:
 	   _Listeria is a bacterium that just causes flu-like symptoms in
 most healthy people, although it can be serious in the young, old
 or weak.
 	   But it's of special concern for pregnant women because the
 bacterium can cause miscarriage or stillbirth even if the mother
 feels no symptoms.
 	   Listeria is estimated to sicken 2,500 Americans a year and kill
 500 of them, and experts estimate one-third of those cases involve
 pregnant women and their babies.
 	   It is most often found in soft cheese like Brie or feta,
 unpasteurized milk products, undercooked meat, poultry or seafood _
 or even ready-to-eat products like deli meats and hot dogs.
 	   _Toxoplasmosis is a parasitic infection that can cause
 miscarriage or birth defects. Many women may know not to clean a
 cat's litter box during pregnancy because it is commonly carried by
 cats, but the parasite also can be found in undercooked meat,
 mostly pork, or unwashed fruits and vegetables that came into
 contact with contaminated soil, CSPI said.
 	   There are no good statistics, but the advocacy group cited
 government estimates that anywhere from 400 to 6,000 infants are
 born infected with toxoplasmosis each year.
 	   Among CSPI's recommendations for pregnant women:
 	   Do not eat products made from unpasteurized milk, and avoid
 soft cheeses like Brie. (Hard cheeses, yogurt, cream cheese and
 cottage cheese are all safe.)
 	   Reheat ready-to-eat foods _ even cold cuts _ until they are
 steaming or do not eat them. Cook meat and poultry until well-done.
 	   Wash your hands before preparing foods and after handling raw
 meats and avoid using the same utensils on raw and cooked foods.
 	   CSPI also is urging government regulators to force more food
 manufacturers to test products for listeria before selling them.
 The call comes a year after Michigan's Bil Mar meat plant had to
 recall 30 million pounds of hot dogs and deli meats because of a
 listeria outbreak that sickened 100 people and killed 21.
 	   Listeria actually is fairly rare, but the government is hunting
 new ways to better prevent it because it is such a threat during
 pregnancy, said Food and Drug Administration food safety chief
 Robert Buchanon. The good news is recalls of listeria-tainted food
 are declining each year, he said.
 	   Dr. Kaye Wachsmith, an Agriculture Department food safety
 expert, said CSPI's new brochure ``will go a long way'' to
 educating women on ways to prevent listeria.
 	   But as a result of the Bil Mar outbreak, Agricultural Department
 officials have urged ready-to-eat food manufacturers to take better
 steps to detect and prevent listeria, and ``we certainly haven't
 rule out'' new regulations, she said.
 	   

In test tube studies, Citricidal GSE stops listeria at 20ppm, a very low concentration. GSE is effective against all known parasites.
 
 

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