Meat: An Asset or a Liability
Is meat an asset to those who eat it or a liability? Aside from the ethical issue are there any negative consequences or plausible threats involved with the consumption of meat? This page will chronicle the effects and consequences of eating various forms of meat (i.e. animal flesh) in an attempt to answer these questions.
- Campylobacter Jejuni - Obtained from eating “raw or undercooked meat and poultry” and is the most prevalent reason for the development of diarrhea (Partnership for Food Safety Education).
- E. coli - This bacterium manufactures a lethal poison and is found in improperly prepared meat and raw milk (Partnership for Food Safety Education). Though animals carry it harmlessly it produces hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS) amongst humans which is fatal (National Pork Producers Council).
- Escherichia coli - This causes “acute infectious diarrhea and [. . .] hemolytic uremic syndrome” in humans. The byproducts from nonhuman animals such as cows, sheep, pork, lamb, poultry, and venison have been directly linked as sources of infection amongst humans (Rabatsky-Her et al. “Deer”).
- Listeriosis - Caused by the bacteria Listeria monocytogenes causes infection in mainly “pregnant women, newborns and adults with a weakened immune system.” This bacterium occurs in improperly prepared “meat, poultry, and seafood” (Partnership for Food Safety Education).
- Staphylococcus - Found in foods high in protein, such as meat. Consumption of this bacterium leads to fits of vomiting (Partnership for Food Safety Education).
- Salmonella - Salmonella causes “millions of cases of foodbourne illness a year” and is derived from improperly prepared meat, seafood, and poultry (Partnership for Food Safety Education).
- Toxoplasmosis – Improperly prepared meat (raw, undercooked, cured) consumed by pregnant mothers has been listed as a “main risk factor” for a parasitic infection called toxoplasmosis. This parasitic infection can result in brain damage for the fetus, such as “mental retardation and visual impairment in children.” (Center for the Advancement of Health; Partnership for Food Safety Education).
- Trichinosis or Trichinellosis - Trichinosis is caused by the larva form of the worm Trichinella. It is most likely in improperly cooked meats, such as wild varieties of meat and pork. Symptoms include “Nausea, diarrhea, vomiting, fatigue, fever, [. . .] abdominal discomfort [. . .] headaches, fevers, chills, cough, eye swelling, aching joints [. . .] muscle pains, itchy skin, diarrhea, or constipation [. . .] difficulty coordinating movements, and have heart and breathing problems. In severe cases, death can occur.” Symptoms depending on the severity of the affliction can endure for many months (CDC, “Trichinosis”).
- Vibrio vulnificus - Contracted from eating under prepared seafood this bacterium is responsible for gastroenteritis (primary septicemia) (Partnership for Food Safety Education).
- Yersiniosis - Yersinia enterocolitica is responsible for the disease yersiniosis that causes “diarrhea and/or vomiting” and is found in pork and dairy products (Partnership for Food Safety Education).
Works Cited
Center For The Advancement Of Health. 14 July 2000. Center For The Advancement Of Health. 29 November 2002
Division of Parasitic Diseases. 15 August 1999. Center for Disease Control and Prevention. 29 November 2002
National Pork Producers Council. 2002. National Pork Producers Council. 26 December 2002
Partnership for Food Safety Education. 2000. Partnership for Food Safety Education. 29 November 2002
Rabatsky-Ehr, Terry, et al. 1 April 2002. Center for Disease Control and Prevention. 1 December 2002
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Posted/Updated: 7/27/03
