Why are antibiotics in animal feed such a big concern to the health of ...

Answer to #1

Antibiotics are administered in animal feed to help reduce the risk of infection in large herds that are crowded together and to promote faster growth and greater meat production. The concern is that similar antibiotics are used to treat infections in people. Bacteria grow quickly and can mutate into strains resistant to the killing effects of the antibiotic drugs. If an E. coli bacterium becomes resistant to a particular antibiotic, the bacterium will continue to grow even if the drug is present. If this bacterium enters a person and causes an infection, the drugs used to treat the infection may not work because the bacterium is resistant to the drugs.

Answer to #2

e

Answer to #3

The FDA's GRAS (Generally Recognized as Safe) list names over 700 food additives that have been proven to not cause harm in people. A food manufacturer need not submit a food additive that is already on the GRAS list to safety testing. If they introduce a new additive, they have to provide results from extensive studies that prove that the additive is safe for human consumption. A new additive that involves any risk can only be used at a concentration at least 100 times lower than the highest concentration at which the risk is still zero (1/100).

Answer to #4

a

Answer to #5

The FDA (Food and Drug Administration) and the EPA (Environmental Protection Agency) regulate the levels of pesticides found within foods and out in the environment. The EPA sets limits for pesticides in foods and both the FDA and the USDA (U.S. Department of Agriculture) will test foods to see if they meet the EPA standards for pesticides. Other countries may have fewer restrictions on pesticide levels, and pesticides can remain on the crops even after transport. The USDA guidelines set strict standards for foods that can or cannot bear the organic label based on the presence or absence of pesticides in the food itself or its contributing ingredients. See Table 12-12 for a list of conventional produce items that contain the most pesticides.

Answer to #6

a

Answer to #7

Foods can be irradiated with high-energy beams of cobalt 60 that will kill microbes within the foods by destroying bacterial DNA. Irradiation also preserves foods.
Modified atmosphere packaging (MAP) ensures that microbes or toxins from the air cannot get into a food. Some disease-causing bacterial species grow well in the absence of oxygen within MAP, so it is very important to store perishable foods in MAP in the refrigerator or freezer.
Some food wraps also contain antimicrobial substances that can prevent the growth of disease-causing pathogens on food as well.

Answer to #8

d

Answer to #9

A foodborne infection is caused by the ingestion of a pathogenic microbe and its subsequent growth within the body. For example, the Salmonella bacterium enters the small intestine, invades the walls of the small intestine, and causes an intense dysentery illness.
A food intoxication is caused by the ingestion of a preformed toxin that is secreted by a living pathogenic microorganism. Clostridium botulinum produces a toxin that can cause paralysis. If someone ingests the bacteria before it produces toxin, they may not get sick, but if they ingest the toxin, they will get very ill. Staphylococcus aureus, a bacterium associated with skin infections, can also produce a toxin that cause food poisoning as well. See Table 12-2 for more examples of foodborne infections and intoxications.