When Spinach Attacks!

[wifezilla]

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20060915/ap_on_...tainted_spinach

"Bagged spinach

[lilie]

Holy shit I love spinach and always buy those bags. Eek.

lilie

[Loon-A-TiK]

i don't know what kind of bacteria this is, that is, can it survive being washed? but a triple-washing you'd think would do the trick. i'm no botonist so my thoughts are not the holy grail of spinich answers.

i thought i only had to be afraid of my food if it used to moo or squack (i'm vegetarian), but now spinich? good lord!

do we trust that they actually wash the stuff?

[olga]

Loon, E. coli bacteria of various strains are everywhere in our environment. They're in your intestines, they're on your kitchen counter, they're in your bag of triple-washed spinach. (Washing greens removes primarily the soil, sand, pebbles and other surface dirts. Washing with cold non-soapy water does NOT remove bacteria.)

This particular strain of E. coli causes internal hemorrhaging, which is why it can be fatal.

I found a link of info about E. coli for anyone who doesn't understand what it is.

Click for E. coli information

One of the primary ways that E. coli gets into our food chain is from human or animal waste. This is why your mom always told you to wash your hands after using the bathroom. You literally can make yourself sick.

On the other hand (pun), we all have some strains of E. coli in our digestive tract, upper respiratory tract, etc. Bacteria help break down our food and perform other important functions in the body.

Buying greens from organic sources does NOT protect you from contracting diseases from bacteria. However, the stronger your immune system, and the more flora and fauna you have living in your system, the less likely you are to be affected by bacterial infections. This is why the people in less-developed countries can drink the water without getting sick, but Americans traveling there get diarrhea.

Hope that clears things up a little.

olga