Tomato juice could help treat food poisoning, new study suggests
Drinking tomato juice could prevent a nasty form of food poisoning that puts 26,000 Americans in the hospital every year, according to a new study.
Researchers at Cornell University examined the effect of tomato juice, the main ingredient in a beloved Bloody Mary cocktail, on salmonella bacteria.
It is usually found in meats such as chicken, turkey and beef that have not been cooked properly.
About 1 in 25 packages of chicken in the supermarket is contaminated with Salmonella, but if you cook the meat at the right temperature, it will die.
For the new study, the team evaluated antimicrobial peptides in tomato juice, small proteins that destroy the membrane that keeps the harmful organism intact.
Tomato juice, a main ingredient in Bloody Marys, has been shown to prevent salmonella strains, which cause food poisoning symptoms such as vomiting and diarrhea
They found that two antimicrobial peptides can stop Salmonella Typhi, a foodborne illness that causes symptoms such as vomiting and diarrhea.
According to the CDC, about 5,000 of the 1.3 million cases of salmonella that occur annually are believed to be of the Typhi type.
Dr. Jeongmin Song, lead author of the study and associate professor in the Department of Microbiology and Immunology at Cornell University, said: ‘Our main goal in this study was to find out whether tomato and tomato juice can kill pathogens, including Salmonella Typhi, and if so . , what qualities they have that enable them to work.’
First they checked whether tomato juice really killed Salmonella Typhi. Once they confirmed this was the case, the team analyzed the tomato’s DNA to find the antimicrobial peptides involved.
The team studied four and found that two were effective at killing Salmonella Typhi by affecting the bacterial membrane, a protective layer that surrounds the pathogen.
The team also found that peptides in tomato juice can kill other strains of salmonella, which affects more than 1.3 million Americans every year.
“Our research shows that tomatoes and tomato juice can remove intestinal bacteria such as Salmonella,” said Dr. Song.
Salmonella typhi is a form of samonella, a type of bacteria that is transmitted through the feces of humans or animals, and symptoms of infection usually begin between six hours and six days after exposure.
They usually disappear within another four to seven days without the need for medical intervention.
Some people have no symptoms. However, the disease can sometimes be more serious and lead to hospitalization.
People with pre-existing medical conditions, weakened immune systems, children under 12 months of age, and the elderly are particularly vulnerable to serious side effects – or even death.
In rare cases, a salmonella infection can cause the organism to enter the bloodstream and cause more serious illnesses, such as infections in the arteries, endocarditis (inflammation of the heart valve), and arthritis.
Salmonella infects more than 1.3 million people annually, leading to 26,500 hospital admissions and 420 deaths per year.
The US just suffered an outbreak of the bacteria linked to pre-cut fruits like cantaloupe last year, sickening more than 400 Americans.
The researchers said they hope the findings will encourage people to eat and drink more tomatoes and other fruits and vegetables.
The study was published Tuesday in the journal Microbiology Spectrum.