Botulism

**__History of Botulism__**
Most likely, Botulism is older than it is recorded in human history. Prehistoric ancestors helped themselves through tough times by saving up meat. But, food spoiled as quickly as it does now; so they used preservation methods that are still used today by contemporary hunter-gatherer societies. Preservation methods included wrapping food in animal skins and animal organs; then cured the meat with smoke and then eventually dried the meat. During the winter time, they buried the meat in the ground, serving it like a refrigerator, making the food freeze. Most of the time, the methods worked, but when done improperly it would lead to botulism that is in soil. Most likely, humans could have been suffering from this bacterial disease for thousands of years earlier. The first known botulism outbreak happened in 1735 in Wilbad, Germany. When thirteen people shared blood sausages, the towns’ favorite dish. Van Ermegen was the man who gave “botulism” its name. Ermegen also found out how botulism spreads. Botulism got its name from sausage because the Latin word for sausage it botulism. The most likely picked sausage because the first food that was recognized of having botulism in 1735 in Germany.

** __How the Disease is Transmitted__ **


Botulism is transmitted by eating swollen or improperly canned foods. This disease can’t be spread. It is absorbed in the blood streams and carried to the nerves. Botulism is a poison that paralyzes the nerves of the victim. Paralyzing the nerves make it so that it is not possible for signals to be sent to the muscles.



** __Symptoms of Botulism and Where it is Most Common__ **


Within twelve to thirty-six hours after swallowing the botulism poison a person can get many symptoms such as dry mouth, trouble swallowing, unclear speech, becoming weak, double vision, vomiting, headaches and more. Paralysis will also start, beginning with the face and moving downward in the body. The person will eventually be unable to breathe and die if not treated right away. There are seven types of botulism (A-G) that can be found many places. Type A can be found most commonly in Brazil, Argentina and the western USA. Type B (proteolytic) can be found in eastern USA while type B (nonproteolytic) is most commonly in the United Kingdom, Denmark and the Netherlands. Type C is spread all over the world and is the most common and type E can be found in places such as Scandinavia, Poland, Japan, Russia, Alaska, Canada and Sweden.

__**Treatment Options**__
There aren’t very many cures or treatments to this quick killing disease, but the earlier botulism is detected, the easier it is to help the sickness. Doctors will ask what you have recently consumed because the food could have caused the botulism. Doctors will conduct tests and they’ll look for toxin in the patient’s bloodstream. If the food that might have caused the botulism hasn’t been digested yet, the food is also tested.

As soon as botulism is detected, doctors order an antitoxin. Antitoxin stops the action of this poison (botulism). Antitoxin works best when it’s given to the patient as soon as possible. Doctors try to remove any food there might be in the person’s body. Physicians use irrigation and debridement (a procedure where dead or contaminated tissue or foreign material is removed to kill the bacteria).

Sometimes botulism gets so bad that you must be put on a breathing machine. You are usually put on this machine when you’ve had botulism for a long time and when antibiotics won’t cure your disease. Some treatments that are given to adults with botulism could terribly harm babies with botulism. The use of antibiotics for babies can make them sicker. Botulinum antitoxin (Botulism Immune Globulin Intravenous, BIG-IV) was developed to treat baby botulism.

Food borne botulism is a major problem. This is most likely caused by home canning. Today, manning canneries are well informed about proper canning methods. There are many inspections throughout the process of canning and this prevents food borne botulism. Health inspectors do not usually come to the homes of families who do their own canning, so this is when food borne botulism usually occurs.

For an overview of this, watch this video [|Click Here]

For more information, click one of the following links below. [|Click Here] [|Click Here] [|Click Here]

__**Citations**__

 * Arida, Adi Issam, Dr. “Botulism.” //SIRS Issues Researcher//. proquest, 3 June 2003. Web. 22 Feb.2012. [].
 * Cupp, Melanie Johns. “Botulism.” //worldbook online//. World Book, Inc, n.d. Web. 22 Feb. 2012.[].
 * Tasian, Sarah K., MD. “what is botulism?” //Teen Health and Wellness: Real Life, Real Answers//.The Rosen Publishing Group, June 2010. Web. 22 Feb. 2012.[].
 * Wiley, John, and Henry Holt. “Botulism.” //[York, NY, 196 pp, n.d. Web. 27 Feb. 2004.* Beech, Linda. "Old-fashioned canning methods are unsafe." //Swktalk.com//.SWKTalk.com and The Garden City Telegram, 2 July 2010. Web. 26 Feb. 2012..* "botulism Disease." //Textmed.com//. The Research Foundation of State University of New York, 15 Sept. 2009. Web. 26 Feb. 2012. [[http://www.textmed.com/ disease/botulism.htm#us_heatmap|http://www.textmed.com/ disease/botulism.htm#us_heatmap].
 * Vangelova, Luba, Md. “BOTULINUM TOXIN: A POISON THAT CAN HEAL .” //SIRS Issues Researcher//. ProQuest LLC, Dec. 1995. Web. 26 Feb. 2012. [].
 * Tasian, Sarah K, MD. “Botulism.” //Teen Health and Wellness: Real Life, Real Answers//. ® The Rosen Publishing Group, Inc. 2012., June 2010. Web. 22 Feb. 2012. [].

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 * Pictures
 * Botulism. N.d. GIF file.
 * How Botulism Effects Host. N.d. JPG file. http://www.bioteck.in/‌2011/‌12/‌diagnosis-of-botulism.html
 * Improperly canned vegtables. N.d. JPG file. http://swktalk.com/‌livingwell/‌old-fashioned-canning-methods-are-unsafe/
 * Where botulism is most common. Map. //Textmed.com//. N.p., n.d. Web. 1 Mar. 2012.

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