A doctor has warned of the risks of bacteria in home canned food

Home canned food takes an honorable place on the festive table, but it is very important to be sure to follow the rules of their preparation. Andrey Pozdnyakov, candidate of medical sciences, infectious disease specialist, chief doctor of clinical diagnostic laboratory "INVITRO-Siberia", told "Izvestia" on December 28 about the risks of bacteria in canned foods.

"Preservation involves sealing a jar with a product, heating it at a certain temperature and placing preserving substances in the jar. All three conditions are aimed at destroying the bacteria that inevitably exist on products subject to canning," explains Pozdnyakov.

According to him, industrial canning is safer, because there is absolutely precisely observed temperature regime, which differs from the type of products - for example, canned meat and canned vegetables are sterilized at different temperatures, also observed concentrations of natural preservatives, which are placed in the jar, and the tightness of the packaging is ensured. These three components ensure the quality of the canned food and its shelf life.

"The most frequent and dangerous microorganism that can be fatal and is contained in canned food is Clostridium botulinum, a microorganism that is very resistant in the external environment and produces a toxin that acts even in minimal concentrations on the body in a very harmful way," the doctor said.

According to the specialist, botulism most often begins with manifestations from the gastrointestinal tract. The manifestation corresponds to non-severe symptoms of intestinal infection: vomiting, diarrheal syndrome, subfebrile (slightly elevated) temperature. Most often these symptoms are expressed moderately, they pass quickly enough, and then there are neurological symptoms: paresis of the oculomotor muscles, in severe cases there may be paresis of the respiratory muscles, which leads to the inability to breathe.

In addition, if canned food is not airtight enough and oxygen can penetrate inside, other microorganisms such as E. coli, enterococci, and sometimes even salmonella can develop in it, which occurs due to violation of canning technology. The most common consequence resulting from consuming contaminated canned food is an intestinal infection.

"If suddenly appeared at least minimal first signs, manifestations of intestinal infection associated with the consumption of home canned food, you should immediately consult a doctor and be sure to emphasize the use of canned food," - summarized Pozdnyakov.

In June, pediatrician Tatyana Burmus, a pediatrician at SM-Clinic for children, told Izvestia about the symptoms of botulism in children. According to her, botulism in infants occurs due to the use of products prohibited for their age, which may contain botulism bacteria. Such products include honey and corn syrup.