Spinning Facts

Once again, we find that the superbug MRSA has been found in the meat supply.

Previous reports of MRSA tainted pork products went largely unnoticed by the public, the FDA and the CDC. It’s now been reported that MRSA has been found in beef, chicken and other retail meats.

Recent recalls of contaminated foods that can make you ill when eaten make you wonder just what government controls really mean to our food supply. Now, we find out we can get a devastating illness that doesn’t react to treatment just by touching food to prepare it.

• Half of the soft tissue and skin infections treated in emergency rooms in the United States are caused by MRSA.
• 94,000 cases of MRSA invading the bloodstream occur each year according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
• Multiply that number  from 8 to 11 times, and you’ll have the total cases of dangerous MRSA infections including pneumonia, urinary tract infections, and the chronic skin infections patients pick up in hospital.

So, you might wonder, have MRSA testing procedures been put in place to protect American consumers from contracting MRSA the next time they wash a chicken leg?

The answer is no. The federal government doesn’t even keep track of MRSA outbreaks.