TOPIC –

Food Poisoning caused by Plants

 What is Food Poisoning?
 Food poisoning happens when people consume food that is
contaminated with harmful bacteria , parasites , viruses and toxins.

 Also known as food borne illness , it can cause a range of symptoms ,

most commonly stomach cramps, diarrhoea , vomiting, nausea and
less of appetite .

 Pregnant women , young children , the elderly and people with

chronic illness have a greater risk of becoming ill with food poisoning.

 FOOD POISONING CAUSED BY PLANTS

 Various types of food products are prepared from plants , that is all
the vegetarian items . These plant foods can be hazardous to people
and pets through physical contact , inhalation or accidental ingestion.
 One major cause of food poisoning that occurs through plants is the
use of fertilizers. Therefore when using fertilizer in edible plants we
should ask a professional for advice.

 According to the American association of poison control centres ,

there were around 1500 reported cases of poisoning from indoor
household plant foods in 2014.

 Including the instances caused by outdoor and unknown fertilizers

raises the number to nearly 5000 cases in 2014.

 The majority of cases were accidental poisoning in children under 5

years of age.
 Fig1 : CAUSES OF FOOD POISONING

What causes plants to be poisonous?

 Vegetables and leaf can become contaminated with harmful

bacteria, such as E .Coli , Salmonella and histeria. This can
occur across various stages of the supply chain.
  Contamination can occur from unclean water and dirty
runoff, which can leach into the soil that fruits and vegetables
are grown in.

 It can occur from dirty processing equipments and

unhygienic food preparation practices. Leafy greens are
especially risky because they are often consumed raw.

 SYMPTOMS OF PLANT FOOD POISONING

I. Skin Redness
II. Burning Sensation on the skin
III. Itchy skin
IV. Burning of the nose ,eyes, throat.

 People may experience these symptoms if they

ingest plant fertilizers/poison :

I. Body parts turn blue from lack of oxygen

 II. Dizziness

III. Fainting

IV. Low blood pressure

V. Seizures

VI. Shortness of breath

VII. Stomach pain

 PRECAUTIONS :

I. Don’t drink anything if you are vomiting , as this could lead to

drowning.

II. The poison control center may advice you to go to hospital. Once
there, the staff will assess the severity of your poisoning.

III. Don’t consume the processed foods if the cans are broken or swollen
of any type.

IV. Take utmost care of each meals, avoid consuming uncovered foods.

Fig 3: SAMPLES OF SOME INFECTED

PLANTS
  CONCLUSION :

Plant food poisoning is the most common cause of food poisoning , which
are mainly acute gastro-enteritis and are very dangerous, can result in
harmful effects in our body or even death. We better raise our awareness
about them that we will be able to save our lives.

Fig4 : CONSUMPTION OF POISONOUS FOODS AFFECTS

OUR HUMAN HEALTH
 REFERENCES
 WWW.WIKIPEDIA.COM
 https/healthline.com
 https/www.posion.org