Tests find drug-resistant bacteria in store-bought pork (MRSA)

[Mrs. Overall]

SEATTLE -- A ground-breaking investigation by the KOMO Problem Solvers has found toxic, life-threatening Methicillin Resistant Staphylococcus Aureus (MRSA) bacteria in some pork you might buy at grocery stores.

This drug-resistant bacteria is already responsible for more deaths in this country than AIDS. What makes MRSA so potentially dangerous is the bacteria can make you sick just by touching it.

In spite of the risk, the U.S. Department of Agriculture has resisted testing store-bought pork for the aggressive bacteria. So, in partnership with our sister stations across the region, we decided to test it ourselves. No matter how you prepare it, the popular wisdom holds that as long as you cook meat thoroughly it won't make you sick. But popular wisdom doesn't take MRSA into account.

Canada and several European countries already test pork in grocery stores for MRSA. We contacted the USDA and were told they have no plans for any testing.

http://www.komonews.com/news/33621204.html

[angstlessk]

1. seems religion had it right about eating pork...seems it has some of the most

deadly diseases for man than most other meats? (beside mad cow disease)

[cosmik debris]

4. You can't blame the pork

When the problem is clearly poor sanitation among the meat handlers.

That's just superstition.

[kestrel91316]

2. Wrong. MRSA cannot "make you sick just by touching it". Poor journalism.

What they MEANT to say, I'm sure, is that you can become infected by skin contact alone. But the fact remains that the contact is not what causes disease, but INFECTION of tissues. Skin is the most common infection site for MRSA, but contact does not and never has equalled infection.

I wish people who wrote about science/medicine were required to have a TINY amount of formal education in the field. Throwing big words around is dangerous.

[Mrs. Overall]

3. Later in the article they did say that you would have to have open abrasions on the hands

in order to be infected.

Is that still not correct?

[kestrel91316]

5. Bacteria cannot penetrate healthy intact skin. And even if you have an abrasion,

if you were to wash with soap and water after contact, you stand a good chance of avoiding infection.

WASH YOUR HANDS WITH SOAP AND WATER LIKE MOM TAUGHT YOU, PEOPLE. And don't pick your zits.

[Mrs. Overall]

6. One more question (if you don't mind)--would freezing the pork first kill the bacteria?

[cosmik debris]

9. Freezing is not always a reliable method.

But the article says: "Like most other bacteria, MRSA will die if it's thoroughly cooked."

Of course, the poor journalistic quality of the piece shows up with this statement:

"No matter how you prepare it, the popular wisdom holds that as long as you cook meat thoroughly it won't make you sick. But popular wisdom doesn't take MRSA into account."

That statement was in the fourth paragraph while the correct information about cooking pork was in paragraph 18.

This is really shoddy journalism. It seems to just be intended to scare rather than to inform.

[kestrel91316]

11. Nope. Freezing is a great way to preserve bacteria.

[global1]

7. Elect McCain - He's Pledged To Stop The Pork - Put Out The Names .......

and make them that wants the pork - famous.

[fasttense]

8. Crap, I was using pork as a substitute for beef.

because of Mad Cow Disease and the FDA's reduction in testing for Mad Cow Disease.

Well, at least it looks like it was found only in ground pork - I wonder if that includes sausage? I guess I'll go back to shredding pork.

[cosmik debris]

10. Properly cooked pork is safe

from everything but superstition and bad journalism.