ONIONS imported from the US are suspected of bringing a deadly strain of superbug into Australia

Clostridium difficile (commonly known as C. diff) is aptly named. A hard-to-treat bacteria, it can be resistant to many antibiotics and often results in infectious diarrhea that can turn fatal. Just last week, the Centers for Disease Control released a new study that found that C. diff. sickened 453,000 Americans and caused 29,000 deaths in 2011 alone.

That’s the theory, at least. Thomas Riley, a professor of microbiology at the University of Western Australia, told the Daily Telegraph he believes that a recent uptick in C. diff cases in Australia could be linked to onions from the US. “[There] had to be a common source, and the most likely source is food,” Thomas told the paper. “We overlayed imports of onions at the time for this particular bug and it [the genome] was a perfect match.”

The onions could potentially become carriers of C. diff if they’re fertilized with infected manure. The problem is that border patrols don’t typically check for the presence of C. diff. Even worse, conventional washing and cooking doesn’t always destroy the bacteria. In the meantime, there’s not much to do but await the publication of Thomas’s study—and maybe start stocking up on probiotics.

Thomas said that he will detail his findings in an upcoming report that demonstrates a possible link between onion imports and the rise of C. diff infections.

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Probiotics may be a good idea if your gonna decide to eat onions until we get the upcoming report. I hope the findings come in soon!
Superfoods loaded with probiotics

I eat a lot of onions so this is not good news for me but I have not been sick really for years. It said in the article it was due they think to infected manure. We organic garden and when we use manure it it composted first and then heated to kill bacteria then we reintroduce colonies of microorganisms we want including archea, rumen bacteria, and fungi. If they do not pasteurize the waste and reintroduce the desired organisms after they run the risk of wild and unwanted bacterial colonies infecting the soil mixture.

Ugg, you don't want C-Diff... It is awful!!!

It's a spore former, that's why it is so difficult to kill (alcohol generally won't do it which is why old folks homes get bad outbreaks.)

My suggestion would be to handle store bought onions more carefully.... Since you are not going to kill the spores I would wash the onion and remove the outer skin and treat it a bit like chicken - don't use the same utensils or surfaces on the clean onions that you used on the unwashed onions.

a reply to: machineintelligence
Yeah i eat a lot of onions also. Thumbs up for your organic gardening and tips

a reply to: Elton
so getting drunk wont help this time
bummer

a reply to: gmoneystunt

Clostridium difficile is ONLY a problem if someone is taking antibiotics! In fact it is a lame bacteria that is very difficult to cultivate, hence the naming. But it's main property is that it is a survivor, once installed because concurrence (other bacteria absent) is removed, it is very hard to get rid of.

Most antibiotics have little effect on it, so it is the dominant one after other bacteria have been killed by antibiotics.

originally posted by: PeterMcFly
a reply to: gmoneystunt

Clostridium difficile is ONLY a problem if someone is taking antibiotics! In fact it is a lame bacteria that is very difficult to cultivate, hence the naming. But it's main property is that it is a survivor, once installed because concurrence (other bacteria absent) is removed, it is very hard to get rid of.

Most antibiotics have little effect on it, so it is the dominant one after other bacteria have been killed by antibiotics.

That used to be the case, we've been seeing a lot more cases where it is infecting people who are not otherwise sick or on antibiotics in the past few years. (I work in a lab and do C-diff testing from time to time, I'd rather not.)

A lazy link to MayoClinic

However, studies show increasing rates of community-associated C. difficile infection, which occurs among populations traditionally not considered high risk, such as children and people without a history of antibiotic use or recent hospitalization.

C. difficile bacteria are passed in feces and spread to food, surfaces and objects when people who are infected don't wash their hands thoroughly. The bacteria produce spores that can persist in a room for weeks or months. If you touch a surface contaminated with C. difficile, you may then unknowingly swallow the bacteria.

SO I would still tread lightly where this bacteria is concerned.

a reply to: Elton

Probably isolated case or good old pharma's propaganda. I've seen your link and they seem serious as the Mayo clinic have good reputation. However as I said, even if the bacteria have gained genes for shigatoxin or other nasty toxin, it is still a slow grower and have no chance against the normal intestinal flora. As said before, it is everywhere. My spouse who have worked in a hospital, once said that they once tested for presence of this bacteria everywhere, and they detected it in fact everywhere, on keyboard, on wall, everywhere...

If this bacteria infect someone, it is because the "field" has been "cleared" for it before!

Remedy is buy local grown produce. It's onion season in the south why the heck is oz importing onions, then again you could catch Queensland fruit fly instead. Support local.

Sounds better than those hepatitis blueberries from China that were going around in Australia not to long ago.

originally posted by: Cloudbuster
Remedy is buy local grown produce. It's onion season in the south why the heck is oz importing onions

thats a good question

"I was speaking to some Queensland industry reps only yesterday and they were quoting figures of independent retailers paying $38 for a bag of imported onions," she said. "They could have been sourcing them from local Queenslanders for between $12 and $13 for that same sized bag; it doesn't really make a lot of sense. "Onions Australia needs to stand up for its Australian onion growers and really stop this happening."

www.abc.net.au...

originally posted by: PeterMcFly
a reply to: gmoneystunt

In fact it is a lame bacteria that is very difficult to cultivate, hence the naming

Latin adjective difficilis because when first identified (by Hall and O’Toole in 1935), the organism was difficult to isolate and grew slowly in a petrie dish but the bacteria likes to grow in the human gut

Onions is kind of a broad category.

They come from a wide variety of regions and growers and are of many different types.

I see nothing that says when this super bug is introduced.

Is it during growing? During handling before or after arrival? During storage? During shipping?

Surely they can pinpoint this a little more for us.

a reply to: Cloudbuster
I agree, and most of the stuff I eat comes from local farms, but I guess in big cities and the like it isn't so easy.
I am surprised that a massive area like Australia can't grow enough onions for its population though, is it a lack of water issue?

*Edit*
Just did a bit of reading, I see it's just down to cost and GMO foods being allowed from the US.

a reply to: grainofsand

originally posted by: grainofsand
I am surprised that a massive area like Australia can't grow enough onions for its population though, is it a lack of water issue?

“We have undertaken a national education campaign to alert both retailers and consumers that Australia has a plentiful supply of our own locally grown onions,” said Lechelle Earl, CEO of Onions Australia.

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