NDM1 - New Super Bug - The Death Of Us All?
By MrHACCP
New Super Bug NDM1 - The Name of Death?
Its official, we have a new super bug in the UK, USA and Canada and It’s called NDM 1. NDM1 deaths are rising and it will be the death of us all sooner or later, or will it? First off, let’s get this straight; it's not a super bug as such but rather a super weapon used by bugs or bacteria that are already dangerous and infectious.
NDM 1 helps bugs like E.Coli to fight off antibiotics by destroying them on behalf of the bug. This makes dangerous bacteria like E.coli, Salmonella and Campylobacter resistant to all but one or two antibiotics.
The bugs are fighting back and they will at least, as they have always done, pick off the weak in our population such as those undergoing treatment in hospital but could it be worse?
Bugs On Steriods!
NDM 1 is a piece of genetic code, rather like a virus in
some ways, that gets passed between bacteria themselves and it basically gives
them super powers by producing an enzyme that helps them survive in the presence of antibiotics that would normally
kill them. Like a super suit of armour if you will.
This is very bad news indeed as in this case there are only two known antibiotics that actually work effectively against such bugs and they are both very old technology with high levels of toxicity and side effects. The medical profession therefore is reluctant to use these antibiotics and so we are down to the human immune system versus a new biological threat for which we have very few defences.
If one thing has become clear in recent years it is that hospitals all over the world are the new breeding grounds for many of the most dangerous bacteria that ever existed. They prey on the weak and sick and prosper at the expense of human life. These organisms evolve fast and when they break out they are furious with us
Bugs That Network!
What makes this particularly bad news is that the UK Health Protection Agency and others have found that already dangerous bacteria, such as E.Coli, which can take on these super powers and what’s more they readily pass on the this ‘technology’ to their pals, resulting in a wider range of organisms that have these super resistant powers.
NDM 1 has serious implications for medical hygiene and rightly so. Much of the focus in the coming days will be on hospital hygiene, cleaning, disinfection and sanitation. NDM 1 will also have a serious impact on HACCP systems worldwide, particularly in hospital catering departments. If this crucial area is overlooked we are in for big trouble and a lot of people will die unnecessarily.
Serious Implications For Hygiene & HACCP
The emergence of this new problem means that food safety and personal hygiene in food preparations areas in hospitals must be reviewed immediately to ensure that hygiene is at its best and cross contamination is minimised. The review must take place in the kitchen on food handlers and in the wards on cleaners, nurses and doctors. In addition it must take place in the serving areas on all staff and users of the facilities. This means that the risk assessment part of the HACCP (Hazard Analysis Critical Control Points) plan must be re-assessed to see if there are areas where this issue could arise.
When is Hot Not?
Take a simple example of hot food of display in a hospital restaurant. A patient, nurse or doctor goes there for lunch and cross contamination takes place, it happens every day and in every hospital in the land. Let's say E.Coli with NDM 1 gets transferred onto a tray of lasagne on hot display. In this case if the food is stored properly at > 65oC then there would not be a problem as the E.Coli would die within a few seconds as this temperature would be too high for it to survive. Just a few degrees lower than this, say 55oC and the bacteria could live for a few minutes. A little lower again it will live there quite happily for hours. Think carefully about this, 65oC is hot, burn your mouth hot, when was the last time you got food that hot from a hot display?
Death Is Inevitable
Now, let’s put this into perspective. E.Coli is one of those bacteria, like Salmonella and Campylobacter that are infective; this means that they only need one or two live bacteria to get into your system to make you very, very, very ill and it could kill.
There is no other way to put this, the situation I am describing above can and DOES happen. People have died from this and will continue to die from this situation above. This is particularly the case in hospital catering situations where there is a large community of very sick people who are prone to infection. In addition to this, because they are prone to infection there is a large reservoir of dangerous bacteria sloshing around that cause these problems every single day.
How To Prevent NDM 1 Deaths
How can this be prevented? Review your HACCP plan and its risk assessment; ensure that your hygiene and infection controls are rock solid. Eliminate and reduce all chances for cross contamination and ensure that hot food is being stored properly and that chilled ready to eat foods are physically protected from contamination. I hope this helps you understand the seriousness of this new threat. Please let me know your comments and feelings on this.
STOP PRESS: See my new hub on practical measures you can take today at NDM1 Cleaning Up On Super Bugs
About the Author:
James Flynn is the author of HACCP
Now, a popular means of implementing HACCP that has been used in over
1000 food businesses world wide.
Please feel free to comment or ask questions using the comments section below.
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Thanks Brian. You know what they say, knowledge is power and the more people know about this earlier the better.
Hummmm...you've got me thinking! especially the part about the hospital cafeteria!
@bayoulady - I don't want to make people paranoid, just aware of these issues. The principle of my example can show up in many situations not just hospitals but hospitals need to have especially high standards of hygiene because of the susceptible nature of the people who are receiving treatment there.
2012 comes true We'LL BE DIE SOON because there're nothing clean
Thanks for the comment Jack Yu. I am certain that 2012 will come and go as normal!
Excellent information. Are you familiar with the New World Order, Illuminati, the corruption and Eugenics secrets of the US government? They are behind all these incidents. This is their grand plan to kill off 90% of the global population so they can control the last 10%. Please, do the research and see for yourself! The us has all the money and power of the free world, that explains all their counter productive actions towards all US citizens. They are attacking the vulnerable first then the rest after.
Hi Christian. Thank you for your comment. You are certainly entitled to your conspiracy basded opinion but I don't subscribe to such theories. Rather I tend to look at the facts for myself with an open mind and see what's going on and this is no consipracy developed in a lab by a government or secret organisation. It's nature at work.
I live in Brampton ONTARIO. They announced today that it was found in a patient in our local hospital. I wanted to find info. on this and thanks to this site I feel more informed.
i am unable to find information of the symptoms related to this. I have been sick with serious lung infection since May. My family Dr said bronchitis...July from hospital x-ray indicated pneumonia. Three antibotics to kill administered..did not kill..one more prescription and still fighting a bad cough now & phlem which take my breath away. With this i experienced lack of appetite no desire to eat whatsoever; profuse sweating & some chills; severe lack of energy; then in end severe pain in lower stomach; weakness & disiness.
@Pam - thank you, glad you found the info useful.
@M. A. Williams - Sorry to hear you are suffering. If the course of treatment is not working that your current Doctor is dispensing I would ask to be referred immediately to a another doctor or a chest specialist. Hope you recover soon.
MrHACCP:
Thanx so much for this informative article. I had not heard of NDM 1 befor this. If only man was as resourceful as nature. We sure have a hard time keeping up!
An excellent Hub! I look forward to reading more of your Hubs.
caretakerray :)
This new NDM1 can reach the US in no time like how the H1N1 did. This is horrible. :0
@cartakerray - thanks for your comments.
@dhnc - globalisation has many benefits but it also has downsides.
Thank God there is a new possible crisis for the fear mongers like rense.com to run wild with. None of the other ones we've been warned of panned out for them, maybe this one will.
This is why hospitals must go totally single use in surgery. Why are we still using foam padding over and over again spreading bugs from patient to patient. Vre is real. What are infection control workers doing. Go into surgery and have a look instead of sitting at your desks reading your horoscopes. Stop reusing single use items. We are at fault here. Tell patients they are being treated with reused single use items.
Hi Arthur, thanks for the comment. Single use items may be one of the ways forward but effective infection control and competent staff together with education of those involved is a must in order to prevent this and similar hospital acquired infections becoming endemic.
to be honest, this is probably going to be nothing more then the swine flue, everyone was saying "oh we are going to die !" now can you tell me ? did really everyone die ? i had the svine flue my self and nothing happened, its just the media taking a piss on us ! Terror sells !
@Fredrik
Most likly not. The swine flu was just another flu while this can and will spread to other bacteria. It's dna that can prevent most drugs to not work. Flu's are much more easier to contral then DNA running around to differnt bacteria. You never know what type will have it next.
I've been reading about NDM1 for almost a year now. I have watched it transfer around the world. Every case seems to source back to India, which is interesting. Based on the data we have to date what are your thoughts in terms of timing and the spread of NDM1? I ask this question to anyone with a thought on the subject.
NDM-1 becoming old now. Its just havoc !
Hospital food has always been lousy and now its got bugs.
We could be creating antibiotic resistant super bugs all over the developed world in our own bodies, our waterways and in the bodies of our livestock. Antibacterial chemicals such as Triclosan are not broken down and after being dumped down the drain have become prevalent in our waterways and drinking water etc. Bacteria of all types, when exposed to these chemicals, develop cross resistance to antibiotics. We also ingest and absorb these chemicals so super bugs can incubate inside our bowels. This likely occurs inside the bowels of wild and domestic animals as well. This could be a disaster in the making, right under our noses.
Check out this video from Alberta, Canada:
now there are ways to detect NDM producers so no need to worry.
when will you people learn that science will never be smarter than nature?... lol... my theory is that mostly the people that have low immunity [due to the crap industrialized food/water, and big pharma(ceuticals) poisons] will die... :-P
There is a new invention from Russia/Australia that eats the bacteria from within. It is called Dezavid's and is manufactured in Thailand www.aqualogic-thai.com.
I use it as a fungiside for foot fungi and to rinse my mouth with. A very mild solution 2-5% is all that is needed. Can be used to wash down hospitals as well.
Another Israeli scientist has come up with another formula which also kills the superbugs.
BRIAN SLATER 21 months ago
good information that scares the hell out of everyone, especially those in hospital.