Toxin-Mediated Food Poisoning

Abstract

A group of 10 young adults attended a summertime beach barbeque together. Each couple contributed to the food served during the picnic. It was a hot summer day, but everything was stored in coolers, on ice, until they were ready to eat. The par-boiled chicken was kept in a cooler separate from the other items. All ten people ate the BBQ chicken served right off the grill. All five women and four of the men ate the macaroni and fruit salads. All ten drank beer with the meal. After they finished eating, they played volleyball on the beach for an hour and then enjoyed cooling down in the lake. On return to the picnic area, the man who had not eaten any macaroni or fruit salad earlier grabbed the salads from the table, where they had been left (covered) and finished the contents of both bowls, while the others enjoyed cold beer and chips. Two hours later, as the group packed up their belongings to head home, then man who had finished off the salads complained of feeling nauseous and began vomiting. When it was suggested that he may have developed food poisoning, he questioned the possibility because he ate the same things that everyone else had eaten. When reminded that he was the only one who had eaten the macaroni salad after it had been sitting unrefrigerated at temperatures over 90°F for several hours, he realized his mistake. He continued to vomit for 3 more hours and then began to feel better. He slept well that night and awoke the next day feeling fine. He called his sister, a public health nurse, later that afternoon to recount his miserable experience. She informed him that he very likely developed staphylococcal food poisoning from a toxin that was being made by the bacteria present in the salad as it sat in the heat all afternoon. The others did not fall ill because the toxin was not present in the salad at the time they ate it. Both were glad that he was the only one from the group who was foolish enough to eat the salad after it had gone unrefrigerated for so long. He has paid closer attention to careful food handling practices ever since.