Stop eating raw cookie dough folks: Salmonella can kill

Be honest, at LEAST once in your life you have found yourself with a spoonful of raw cookie dough risking it all for that sweet bliss. Who cares if mom says i’ll get salmonella, its better than the actual cookies. Everyone knows (at least I hope) you can contract a strain of Salmonella from eating raw eggs, which is why the dough needs to be cooked before it can be consumed. Hot air ovens destroy bacteria and denature proteins, but it takes some time. Salmonella is common in the US with two distinct serotypes: Typhimurium and Enteriditis.

Within 2019 there have been 1000+ reported cases of salmonella related illnesses, with 2 deaths. The outbreaks have stretched to 49 states, so basically all of the United States are being rattled by salmonella. The cause is believed to be linked to at home poultry being infected with salmonella and spreading it to the homeowners. More than half of the reported cases can say that they were in contact with poultry (such as chicks or ducklings) before they became ill. This is common amongst multiple states which is why it is believed to be the cause. Though most people have a mild disease process of diarrhea and fever with stomach cramps, some patients need antibiotics to avoid death which is becoming an issue with rising resistant strains. Of course the people most at risk are young children who just LOVE those little chicks and the elderly for being more susceptible to disease.

The EASIEST way to prevent this is to wash YA HANDS! People act like disease is so hard to prevent but here I am telling you to wash those hands and prevent spreading disease to your buddies. Another tip to preventing disease is to not let the backyard poultry into your home, which seems self explanatory but if it has to be said then clearly people are sleeping with chickens in their homes. Some outbreaks have also been linked to dog treats that come from pig ears that have been contaminated with salmonella, so after you give your pupper a nice treat make sure you wash those hands people. Multiple strains of the disease were identified across the states, but it was easy to identify the issue and release data and prevention tips to end the outbreaks from occurring.