So where is all the food poisoning?

The following is a summary of a recent report by the World Health Organisation (WHO) – Estimates of the Global Burden of Foodborne Diseases.

• Children under five account for 30 percent of      the deaths from foodborne disease
• 96000 children die each year from food borne      illness involving diarrhoea
• 600 million people become ill each year from      eating contaminated food
• Diarrhoea is involved in more than half of      food poisonings, including 230000 deaths each year
• Salmonella affects people in high and      low income countries
• Foodborne Cholera, Typhoid and E.coli are common in low income      countries
• Campylobacter      is      more commonly associated with high income countries
• One person in 10 worldwide will become ill      from contaminated food
• 420000 deaths each year from contaminated food
• In the African region – has the highest amount      of food borne illness per population with more than 91 million people      falling ill and 137000 deaths. Non-typhoidal Salmonella is the main cause with 32000 deaths – more than      half of the total world deaths from this disease. Non bacterial food borne      illness, like cyanide and aflatoxin cause one quarter of the food borne      disease deaths.
• In the Americas region – 77 million cases      makes it the second lowest in the world. There are an estimated 9000      deaths each year – of which 2000 are children. Norovirus, Non-typhoidal Salmonella, Campylobacter and E.coli      account for 95 percent of cases. In Central and South America there      are specific issues with pork tapeworm.
• In the Western Pacific region – 125 million      people are affected by contaminated food and there are 50000 deaths, of      which 7000 are children. It is aflatoxin which is the biggest issue in      this region with around 70 percent of the total number of cases for the      world. Chinese liver fluke is the single biggest issue with 30000 people      infected, nearly 100 percent of all world cases, and death in one in five      cases.
• In the South East Asia egion – the second      highest amount of food borne disease per population but the highest number      of deaths at 175000, of which 50000 are children. E.coli, Norovirus and non -typhoidal Salmonella are the main causes. The number of cases of      Hepatitis A and Typhoid in this region account for half of the worldwide      cases.
• In the European region – the lowest amount of      food borne disease with more than 23 million cases and 5000 deaths. Norovirus      and Campylobacter are the main      causes with nearly 20 million cases. However it is non-typhoidal Salmonella which cause the most deaths      at nearly 2000 each year. Listeria      causes around 400 deaths annually.