Go easy on roadside meat during summer, caution experts

Following the detection of Shigella and Salmonella bacteria in shawarma samples days after suspected food poisoning in Kasaragod district of Kerala claimed the life of a 16yearold girl and left 58 unwell health experts have cautioned Mumbaikars against eating roadside meat especially during summerV R Vinod Commissioner of Food Safety Kerala said they got the test report on Saturday confirming the presence of the above bacteria in shawarma samples ldquoAlso the pepper samples collected from the said food joint in Kasargod also tested positive for Salmonella We have intensified our crackdown on shoddy roadside food jointsrdquo he saidDr Santosh Bansode HoD Emergency Medicine Wockhardt Hospitals Mumbai CentralVinod said they have so far collected 125 samples from across Kerala and have destroyed 16150 kg of chicken that was spoiled or kept in an unhygienic condition Of 1481 food joints inspected Vinod said 132 were found to be violating the FSSAI guidelines He said ldquoAlso notices have been issued to 226 joints for violation of FSSAI norms incuding operating without licencerdquo The state has come up with a helplinemdash1800 425 1125mdashfor people to lodge complaints against food joints for violation of food safety guidelines He quoted the Center for Disease Control CDC in the USA which said that every year there are 80 to 165 million Shigella cases worldwide and 6 lakh Shigella deaths annuallyDr Wiqar Shaikh Professor of Medicine Grant Medical College and Sir JJ Group of Hospitals said Shigella is mostly found in uncooked vegetables chicken and shellfish Fever bloody diarrhoea stomach cramps and dehydration are the common symptoms of Shigella said Dr ShaikhldquoShigella dysentery outbreak from roadside Shawarmastyle meat dhabas should be treated as a public health alert in all states The classical route of transmission of Shigella bacteria is from infected faeces to the mouth of the new host This happens when a food handler is a Shigella carrier and doesnt wash hisher hands with soap and waterhelliprdquo said Dr Subhash Hira Professor of Global Health at University of WashingtonSeattle If meat is not cooked properly bacteria and worms can persist in it ldquoIn metro cities the public at large is fond of street foods and meat preparations like shawarma which are common everywhere When it comes to roadside food joints or dhabas across highways we do not know the hygiene parameters in such eating jointsrdquo said Dr Santosh Bansode HoD Emergency Medicine Wockhardt Hospitals Mumbai CentralStressing that contaminated water is yet another significant source of spread of Shigella Dr Ketan Vagholkar Professor of Surgery at DY Patil Medical College said citizens must report to their physician if they develop symptoms like loose watery stools with blood in themlsquoWill educate street vendorsrsquoA senior official from Maharastra Food and Drugs Administration said they have been holding awareness programmes on hygiene and sanitary practices for food joints FDA has also certified certain pockets in Girgaum Chowpatty and Juhu as lsquoClean Street Food hubrsquo ldquoWe will also educate the street food vendors on the Kerala incident and ensure that they take adequate care of maintaining hygiene while cooking meat and nonvegetarian food especially Chinese foodrdquo said the officialAttempts to contact BMC health officials did not yield any resultTo stop Shigella Wash hands with soap and water before any sexual activity or handling food or after going to toilet or changing a diaper Dispose of soiled diapers in a covered garbage bin Avoid swallowing water from ponds lakes or swimming pools Avoid roadside food particularly meat during summer months If you or your partner has had diarrhoea avoid sex for at least 2 weeksCourtesy Dr Wiqar Shaikh