Research Note Consumption of Raw Flour in the United States: Results from the 2019 FDA Food Safety and Nutrition Survey

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Linda Verrill ◽  
A. Lando ◽  
F. Wu ◽  
A Tatavarthy ◽  
Donald Obenhuber
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Food Safety ◽  
Foodborne Pathogens ◽  
The United States ◽  
Nutrition Survey ◽  
Demographic Differences ◽  
E Coli ◽  
The Past ◽  
Sizeable Number ◽  
The U.S

Several outbreaks of shigatoxin-producing E. coli (STEC) in the past decade linked to flour and flour-associated products have raised concerns that the consumption of raw flour represents a public health risk as a vehicle for foodborne pathogens. The extent to which consumers know and understand they should not consume raw flour is unclear. In the fall of 2019, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration collected data on uncooked flour perceptions and self-reported consumption behaviors via the Food Safety and Nutrition Survey (FSANS), a national probability survey of U.S. adults (18+). Cross-tabulations and regressions were used to analyze the data (n=2,171). Thirty-five percent of consumers reported having tasted or eaten something with uncooked flour in it in the last 12 months. Responses differed significantly by sex, race, education, and age. On average, respondents indicated that uncooked flour is not likely to contain germs that can make people sick, with significant differences noted by demographic categories. Respondents rated raw homemade cookie dough as moderately likely to have germs that can make people sick, with significant demographic differences. In conclusion, U.S. consumers are largely unaware that raw flour is risky to consume, and a sizeable number are consuming products that contain raw flour.

Introduction to the Food Safety Concerns of Verotoxin-Producing Escherichia coli

2003 ◽  
Vol 228 (4) ◽  
pp. 331-332 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hussein S. Hussein ◽  
Stanley T. Omaye
Keyword(s):  
Escherichia Coli ◽  
Food Safety ◽  
Safety Concern ◽  
Critical Evaluation ◽  
The United States ◽  
Global Perspective ◽  
E Coli ◽  
The Past ◽  
Food Borne Pathogens ◽  
Food Borne

Verotoxin-producing Escherichia coli (VTEC) have emerged in the past two decades as food-borne pathogens that can cause major outbreaks of human illnesses worldwide. The number of outbreaks has increased in recent years due to changes in food production and processing systems, eating habits, microbial adaptation, and methods of VTEC transmission. The human illnesses range from mild diarrhea to hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS) that can lead to death. The VTEC outbreaks have been attributed to O157:H7 and non-O157:H7 serotypes of E. coli. These E. coli serotypes include motile (e.g., O26:H11 and O104:H21) and nonmotile (e.g., O111:H–,0145:H–, and O157:H–) strains. In the United States, E. coli O157:H7 has been the major cause of VTEC outbreaks. Worldwide, however, non-O157:H7 VTEC (e.g., members of the 026, O103, O111, O118, O145, and O166 serogroups) have caused approximately 30% of the HUS cases in the past decade. Because large numbers of the VTEC outbreaks have been attributed to consumption of ruminant products (e.g., ground beef), cattle and sheep are considered reservoirs of these food-borne pathogens. Because of the food safety concern of VTEC, a global perspective on this problem is addressed (Exp Biol Med Vol. 228, No. 4). The first objective was to evaluate the known non-O157:H7 VTEC strains and the limitations associated with their detection and characterization. The second objective was to identify the VTEC serotypes associated with outbreaks of human illnesses and to provide critical evaluation of their virulence. The third objective was to determine the rumen effect on survival of E. coli O157:H7 as a VTEC model. The fourth objective was to explore the role of intimins in promoting attaching and effacing lesions in humans. Finally, the ability of VTEC to cause persistent infections in cattle was evaluated.

Rapid and Sensitive Detection of Escherichia coli O157:H7 in Milk and Ground Beef Using Magnetic Bead–Based Immunoassay Coupled with Tyramide Signal Amplification

2014 ◽  
Vol 77 (1) ◽  
pp. 100-105 ◽  
Author(s):  
MUHSIN AYDIN ◽  
GENE P. D. HERZIG ◽  
KWANG CHEOL JEONG ◽  
SAMANTHA DUNIGAN ◽  
PARTH SHAH ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Escherichia Coli ◽  
Food Safety ◽  
Foodborne Pathogens ◽  
Signal Amplification ◽  
Magnetic Bead ◽  
Escherichia Coli O157 ◽  
Tyramide Signal Amplification ◽  
E Coli ◽  
Enrichment Step

Escherichia coli O157:H7 is a major foodborne pathogen that has posed serious problems for food safety and public health. Recent outbreaks and recalls associated with various foods contaminated by E. coli O157:H7 clearly indicate its deleterious effect on food safety. A rapid and sensitive detection assay is needed for this harmful organism to prevent foodborne illnesses and control outbreaks in a timely manner. We developed a magnetic bead–based immunoassay for detection of E. coli O157:H7 (the most well-known Shiga toxigenic E. coli strain) with a 96-well microplate as an assay platform. Immunomagnetic separation (IMS) and tyramide signal amplification were coupled to the assay to increase its sensitivity and specificity. This immunoassay was able to detect E. coli O157:H7 in pure culture with a detection limit of 50 CFU/ml in less than 3 h without an enrichment step. The detection limit was decreased 10-fold to 5 CFU/ml with addition of a 3-h enrichment step. When this assay was tested with other nontarget foodborne pathogens and common enteric bacteria, no cross-reactivity was found. When tested with artificially contaminated ground beef and milk samples, the assay sensitivity decreased two- to fivefold, with detection limits of 250 and 100 CFU/ml, respectively, probably because of the food matrix effect. The assay results also were compared with those of a sandwich-type enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) and an ELISA coupled with IMS; the developed assay was 25 times and 4 times more sensitive than the standard ELISA and the IMS-ELISA, respectively. Tyramide signal amplification combined with IMS can improve sensitivity and specificity for detection of E. coli O157:H7. The developed assay could be easily adapted for other foodborne pathogens and will contribute to improved food safety and public health.

Eugenics in the United States

2012 ◽  
Author(s):  
Wendy Kline
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
United States ◽  
Public Health Service ◽  
The United States ◽  
Controversial Issues ◽  
The Past ◽  
Complicated Process ◽  
History Of ◽  
Race Betterment ◽  
The U.S

This article provides an understanding of the history of the nature/nurture debate that was initially of great interest to both intellectual and social historians. It presents in-depth studies of influential organization and individuals and discusses two approaches introduced by the history of science to the study of eugenics. It links eugenic concerns about race betterment with concerns about Mexican immigration, arguing that in the early twentieth century, the U.S. Public Health Service (USPHS) and the Border Patrol shaped the complicated process of racialization on the U.S.-Mexican borderlands. This article argues that disability is a category of analysis as important as race, class, or gender in understanding the past. Eugenics is no longer a forgotten relic of the past, but a vibrant field that addresses controversial issues from a variety of fields and standpoints.

scholarly journals Prevalence and Antimicrobial Resistance Profiles of Foodborne Pathogens Isolated from Dairy Cattle and Poultry Manure Amended Farms in Northeastern Ohio, the United States

Antibiotics ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (12) ◽  
pp. 1450
Author(s):  
Woinshet Hailu ◽  
Yosra A. Helmy ◽  
Geoffrey Carney-Knisely ◽  
Michael Kauffman ◽  
Dean Fraga ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Antibiotic Resistance ◽  
Antimicrobial Resistance ◽  
Dairy Cattle ◽  
Foodborne Pathogens ◽  
Poultry Manure ◽  
The United States ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
Health Crisis ◽  
E Coli

Foodborne pathogens significantly impact public health globally. Excessive antimicrobial use plays a significant role in the development of the public health crisis of antibiotic resistance. Here, we determined the prevalence and antimicrobial resistance profiles of E. coli O157, Salmonella, L. monocytogenes, and Campylobacter isolated between 2016 and 2020 from small scale agricultural settings that were amended with dairy cattle or poultry manure in Northeastern Ohio. The total prevalence of the foodborne pathogens was 19.3%: Campylobacter 8%, Listeria monocytogenes 7.9%, Escherichia coli O157 1.8%, and Salmonella 1.5%. The prevalence was significantly higher in dairy cattle (87.7%) compared to poultry (12.2%) manure amended farms. Furthermore, the prevalence was higher in manure samples (84%) compared to soil samples (15.9%; p < 0.05). Multiple drug resistance was observed in 73%, 77%, 100%, and 57.3% of E. coli O157, Salmonella, L. monocytogenes, and Campylobacter isolates recovered, respectively. The most frequently observed resistance genes were mphA, aadA, and aphA1 in E. coli O157; blaTEM, tet(B), and strA in Salmonella; penA, ampC, lde, ermB, tet(O), and aadB in L. monocytogenes and blaOXA-61, tet(O), and aadE in Campylobacter. Our results highlight the critical need to address the dissemination of foodborne pathogens and antibiotic resistance in agricultural settings.

Photocatalytically Enhanced Inactivation of Internalized Pathogenic Bacteria in Fresh Produce using Ultraviolet Irradiation with Nano-titanium Dioxide

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Seungjun Lee ◽  
Chulkyoon Mok ◽  
Jiyoung Lee
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Titanium Dioxide ◽  
Food Safety ◽  
Uv Irradiation ◽  
Foodborne Pathogens ◽  
Pathogenic Bacteria ◽  
Safety Issue ◽  
Fresh Produce ◽  
Future Research ◽  
E Coli

Once pathogens are internalized in fresh produce, they pose a challenging food safety issue since they are not effectively inactivated by conventional rinsing or sanitization. To protect food safety and public health, the objectives were to examine internalized levels of foodborne pathogens in different types of fresh produce and to investigate the effectiveness of photocatalytically enhanced inactivation of internalized pathogens in fresh produce using UV irradiation with titanium dioxide (TiO 2 ). For this, green fluorescent protein-labeled S. Typhimurium and E. coli O157:H7 were inoculated on the leaf surface of four types of fresh produce (~10 8 CFU (colony-forming unit)/leaf) and varying concentrations of TiO 2 suspension (0.50, 0.75, 1.00, 1.25, and 1.50 µg/ml)) were applied to the surface of contaminated leaves. Depending on the nature of each vegetable, the internalized bacterial level differed (log 2 – 5 CFU/g of leaf). When UV irradiation (6,000 J/m 2 ) was applied, the internalized S. Typhimurium and E. coli levels were reduced by 0.8 – 2.4 log CFU/leaf and was with TiO 2 , the reduction was 1.1 – 3.7 log CFU/leaf. The inactivation efficiency increased as the TiO 2 concentration (up to 1.50 μg/leaf). These results indicate that the TiO 2 application enhanced the photocatalytic inactivation of internalized foodborne pathogens. The application of TiO2 would be most practical before UV irradiation and before distributing the produce. This study established a platform for future research on the inactivation of various internalized pathogens for protecting public health and scaling up fresh produce treatments by the food industry.

The Future of FBI Counterintelligence through the Lens of the Past Hundred Years

2010 ◽  
pp. 504-517
Author(s):  
Raymond J. Batvinis
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
The United States ◽  
Main Concern ◽  
Federal Bureau ◽  
The Past ◽  
Intelligence Services ◽  
Terrorist Groups ◽  
Foreign Intelligence ◽  
Key Events ◽  
The U.S

Counterintelligence is the business of identifying and dealing with foreign intelligence threats to a nation, such as the United States. Its main concern is the intelligence services of foreign states and similar organizations of non-state actors, such as transnational terrorist groups. Counterintelligence functions both as a defensive measure that protects the nation's secrets and assets against foreign intelligence penetration and as an offensive measure to find out what foreign intelligence organizations are planning to defeat better their aim. This article addresses the Federal Bureau of Investigation's (FBI) foreign counterintelligence function. It briefly traces its evolution by examining the key events and the issues that effected its growth as the principle civilian counterintelligence service of the U.S. government.

scholarly journals Immunizing the Flock: How the Pandemic Court Rewrote Religious Freedom

Laws ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
pp. 12
Author(s):  
Paul Baumgardner
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Supreme Court ◽  
Legal System ◽  
Religious Freedom ◽  
The United States ◽  
Religious Practices ◽  
The Past ◽  
The U.S

When coronavirus began to descend upon the United States, religious freedom advocates across the country sounded the alarm that citizens’ religious practices and institutions were under threat. Although some of the most extreme arguments championed by these advocates were not validated by our legal system, many were. This article explores the underappreciated gains made by religious freedom advocates before the U.S. Supreme Court over the past year. As a result of the “Pandemic Court”, religious freedom in the United States has been rewritten. This promises to radically change the educational, employment, and health prospects of millions of Americans for the rest of the pandemic and long afterwards.

Driving and Public Health

2021 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
United States ◽  
Health Problem ◽  
Cell Phone ◽  
Motor Vehicle ◽  
Electronic Device ◽  
Public Health Problem ◽  
The United States ◽  
Distracted Driving ◽  
The Past

Distracted driving is defined in the Oxford English Dictionary as “the practice of driving a motor vehicle while engaged in another activity, typically one that involves the use of a mobile phone or other electronic device.” However, other distractions not involving the use of a cell phone or texting are important as well, contributing to this burgeoning public health problem in the United States. Examples include talking to other passengers, adjusting the radio or other controls in the car, and daydreaming. Distracted driving has been linked to increased risk of motor vehicle crashes (MVCs) in the United States, representing one of the most preventable leading causes of death for youth ages 16 to 24 years. Undoubtedly, the proliferation of cell phone, global positioning system (GPS), and other in-vehicle and personal electronic device use while driving has led to this rise in distracted driving prevalence. This behavior has impacted society—including individual and commercial drivers, passengers, pedestrians—in countless numbers of ways, ranging from increased MVCs and deaths to the enactment of new driving laws. In 2016, for example, 20 percent of all US pediatric deaths (nearly 4,000 children and adolescents) were due to fatal MVCs. It has been estimated that at any given time, more than 650,000 drivers are using cell phones or manipulating electronic devices while driving. In the United States, efforts are underway to reduce this driving behavior. In the past two decades, state and federal laws have specifically targeted cell phone use and texting while driving as priority areas for legal intervention. Distracted driving laws have become “strategies of choice” for tackling this public health problem, though their enforcement has emerged as a major challenge and varies by jurisdiction and location. Multimodal interventions using models such as the “three Es” framework—Enactment of a law, Education of the public about the law and safety practices, and Enforcement of the law—have become accepted practice or viewed as necessary steps to successfully change this behavior caused by distractions while driving. This Oxford Bibliographies review introduces these and other aspects (including psychological influences and road conditions) of distracted driving through a presentation of annotated resources from peer- and non-peer-reviewed literature. This selective review aims to provide policymakers, program implementers, and researchers with a reliable source of information on the past and current state of American laws, policies, and priorities for distracted driving.

Abstract P183: 20-year Secular Trend of Cardiovascular Disease Comorbidities in the United States, 1997-2016

Circulation ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 137 (suppl_1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Dianjianyi Sun ◽  
Tao Zhou ◽  
Xiang Li ◽  
Yoriko Heianza ◽  
Xiaoyun Shang ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Cardiovascular Disease ◽  
Secular Trend ◽  
Adult Population ◽  
The United States ◽  
The Past ◽  
The Us ◽  
Metabolic Conditions ◽  
Respiratory Conditions ◽  
The U.S ◽  
Chronic Comorbidities

Background: Cardiovascular disease (CVD) has been the number one cause of death and disability in the US and globally for decades, and its comorbidity complicates the management of CVD. However, little is known about the secular trend of CVD comorbidities in national representative populations in the last 20 years. Methods: Prevalence of CVD and nine major chronic comorbidities was estimated using data from 1,324,214 adults aged 18 years and older in the National Health Interview Survey (NHIS) from 1997 through 2016, with age-standardized to the U.S. population in the year 2000. Results: CVD prevalence in the US adult population significantly declined in the past twenty years (from 6.6% in 1997 to 5.9% in 2016, P trend <0.01in Figure a). And such trend was shown in women and whites (P trend <0.01), but not in men and blacks (P trend >0.05). We ranked the nine major chronic comorbidities (high to low) in the CVD patients (Figure b.), including (1) hypertension, (2) respiratory conditions, (3) nervous system conditions, (4) digestive conditions, (5) diabetes, (6) cancer, (7) genitourinary conditions, (8) circulatory conditions, and (9) endocrine/nutritional/metabolic conditions. From 1997 to 2016, the prevalence of CVD comorbidities including hypertension (38.8% to 50.2%), digestive conditions (17.0% to 27.1%), diabetes (10.0% to 19.2%), cancer (9.4% to 12.8%), and genitourinary conditions (4.1% to 5.2%) continuingly increased (all P trend <0.01), while respiratory conditions declined (35.9% to 27.6%, P trend <0.01). Similar trends of CVD comorbidities were observed among subgroups stratified by gender or by race. Conclusions: CVD prevalence in the U.S. adults have declined significantly in the past two decades, but rates of CVD comorbidities including hypertension, digestive conditions, diabetes, cancer, and genitourinary conditions increased substantially.

Cuba and the Covid-19 pandemic

2021 ◽  
Vol 122 (1) ◽  
pp. 118-131
Author(s):  
Bob Oram
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
United States ◽  
Health System ◽  
Health Professionals ◽  
The United States ◽  
The Past ◽  
The Uk ◽  
Universal Health

For the UK struggling to deal with the Covid-19 pandemic, the experience of Cuba’s Ministry of Public Health over the past six decades provides the clearest case for a single, universal health system constituting an underlying national grid dedicated to prevention and care; an abundance of health professionals, accessible everywhere; a world-renowned science and biotech capability; and an educated public schooled in public health. All this was achieved despite being under a vicious blockade by the United States for all of that time.

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