Food Poisoning: Types, Causes and Treatment

Food Poisoning Food – poisoning is an acute gastro- enteritis caused by contaminated the ingestion of the food or drink with either living bacteria or their toxins or inorganic chemical substances and poison delivered from the plant and animals. 2  Poison...

Food Poisoning Food – poisoning is an acute gastro- enteritis caused by contaminated the ingestion of the food or drink with either living bacteria or their toxins or inorganic chemical substances and poison delivered from the plant and animals. 2  Poison is a substance which, when introduced into the living body, is capable of producing deleterious effects, ill health or even death. All substances are poisons, there is none which is not a poison. The right dose differentiates a poison and a remedy) TYPES OF THE FOOD POISONING 4 A. Non – bacterial type of the food poisoning A. Bacterial Type of the food poisoning 5 MAR 6  A. NON – BACTERIAL TYPE OF THE FOOD POISONING It is caused by the chemicals such as A. Arsenic B. Certain plants & sea foods C. Fertilizer D. Pesticides E. Cadmium 7 F. Mercury  POISONOUS PLANTS Castor Bean  The castor bean plant is grown for commercial and ornamental purposes.  Ingestion of only one castor been has caused fatal poisoning when the bean was chewed.  The seeds (and to a much lesser extent the leaves) contain ricin, a protein, which is highly toxic in small quantities 1. Castor Bean  Ricin, a toxic albumin found in castor beans. Toxic manifestations:  The principal manifestations of with castor beans are poisoning vomiting, diarrhea and circulatory collapse  Ingestion of castor beans causes burning of the mouth, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, abdominal pain, drowsiness, cyanosis, stupor, circulatory collapse, retinal hemorrhage, hematuria and convulsions.  The vomitus and stools may contain blood. Chronic poisoning causes dermatitis and inflammation of the nose, throat and eyes.  The lethal dose of ricin in man has been estimated to be 1 mg/kg body weight (about eight seeds). Mushroom poision  Mushrooms: Amanita muscaria, A. pantherina, A. gemmate  One of the most poisonous mushrooms 2. Mushrooms  Poisonous mushrooms may grow wherever nonpoisonous mushrooms grow  They inhibit RNA polymerase II within the nucleoplasm at very low concentrations and thus interfere with both RNA and DNA transcription. develop necrosis in (liver, kidney and intestinal cells) Treatment  General measures:  Careful control of fluid and electrolyte balance must be continued for 10-15 days.  Repeated hemodialysis has been successfully in bringing about complete recovery.  Large quantities of carbohydrate appear to help protect the liver from further damage.  Give vitamin K for bleeding.  Man who’s skin turned a bright shade of blue  He was taking a home-made colloidal silver remedy which he thought would be healthy. After a while, the silver started to build up in his system, causing a condition called argyria, which turned his skin blue Chemical food poisoning:  Storage of foods such as fruit juice in containers lined with cadmium, copper, or zinc will lead to acute gastric irritation manifested by nausea, vomiting and diarrhea.  The disease usually lasts 24-48 hours. It is caused by the ingestion of the food contaminated by the:- 1. Living bacteria or their toxins 2. Some times both- Multiplication and toxins production. 1 6 Factors modifying the action of poisons A- Factors related to the toxicant Dose State of the poison Methods of administration Absorption Distribution Metabolism Excretion Factors modifying the action of poisons B- Factors related to the subject Condition of the stomach i. Empty or full ii. Nature of the stomach content iii. Gastric secretion Age of the patient State of the patient’s health Tolerance or habituation Personal hypersensitivity Genetic factors Factors modifying the action of poisons A- Factors related to the toxicant i.Dose The bigger the dose the more toxic effect. Except metallic poisons when taken in big doses, may cause profuse vomiting, thus getting rid of most of the poison, while small amount will produce more toxic effect after absorption. ii.State of the poison: Gases or vapours have more marked and rapid action than liquid which is more absorbed than solid (fine powder more quickly than big crystals). Factors modifying the action of poisons  iii. Methods of administration The quickest intravenous injection, inhalation, intramuscular and subcutaneous injection, the mucus membrane (rectum and vaginal) and the intact skin.  iv. Absorption The rates and extent of absorption may vary greatly depending on the form of the chemical and the route of exposure. For example, ethanol is readily absorbed from the gastrointestinal tract but poorly absorbed through the skin. Factors modifying the action of poisons  v. Distribution: The distribution of toxicants and toxic metabolites throughout the body ultimately determines the sites where toxicity occurs. A major determinant of whether or not a toxicant will damage cells is its lipid solubility. If a toxicant is lipid soluble it readily penetrates cell membranes. Factors modifying the action of poisons vi. Metabolism: Metabolism is a major factor in determining toxicity. There are two types of metabolism, detoxification and bioactivation Detoxification is the process by which a xenobiotic is converted to a less toxic form. Bioactivation is the process by which a xenobiotic may be converted to more reactive or toxic forms Factors modifying the action of poisons vii. Excretion: The site and rate of excretion is another major factor affecting the toxicity of a xenobiotic. The kidney is the primary excretory organ, followed by the gastrointestinal tract and the lungs (for gases). Xenobiotics may also be excreted in sweat, tears and milk. Lipid-soluble toxicants are reabsorbed and concentrated in kidney cells. Factors modifying the action of poisons B- Factors related to the subject 1. Condition of the stomach i. Empty or full. A poison given on an empty stomach has quicker action than the same dose of poison on a full stomach. ii. Nature of the stomach content Fatty food delays the absorption of poisons by coating the gastric mucosa, except in fat soluble poison as organophosphorus compounds. iii. Gastric secretion In case of achlorhydria, poisoning with potassium cyanide may not be fatal HCl + KCN HCN (the toxic form) + KCl Factors modifying the action of poisons 2.Age of the patient Children and elder people are more susceptible to the toxic agent, except in atropine poisoning children can stand the action. 3.State of the patient’s health Liver, kidney, and heart diseases will increase the toxicity of most of the poisons. On the other hand, some diseases hinder the effect of certain poisons. Factors modifying the action of poisons 4.Tolerance or habituation Personswho are addicted to some substances can stand big doses without ill-effect. 5.Personal hypersensitivity Very small harmless doses of drugs may produce severe symptoms, e.g. penicillin. Factors modifying the action of poisons 6. Genetic factors Some individuals are more susceptible even to therapeutic dose of some drugs due to deficiency of certain enzymes, e.g. individuals with glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase deficiency are more susceptible to haemolytic effect of some drugs as vitamin K.  Sex: Sex difference is sometimes observed e.g. women are more susceptible to some substances than men.  Race: Colored races are generally less susceptible than the white races to poisons which are absorbed through the skin. 2 8 Investigation of the food poisoning 1)Secure complete list of the people involved and their history 2)Laboratory Investigation 3)Animal Experiments 4)Blood for the antibodies 5)Environmental Study 6) Analysis of the data according to descriptive method of time, place and person 7) A case control study may be undertaken to establish the epidemiologic association between illness and the intake of the particular 2 9 Ten golden rules -world health organisation (who) 1.Cook raw food thoroughly. 2.Eat cooked food immediately 3.Prepare food for only one meal 4.Avoid contact between raw foods and cooked foods 5.Choose foods processed for safety. 6.Wash hands repeatedly 7.Keep all food preparation premises meticulously clean 8.Use safe water 9.Be cautious with foods purchased 3 0