What are the statistics on how many people get botulism each year from improperly canned green beans? If they get botulism from green beans, what is the treatment?
According to Mead et al. (2000), the estimated annual number of cases of food borne botulism is 58. Keep in mind that the estimated number of cases of food borne illnesses due to all bacterial agents is more than 5 million. Therefore, in the total scheme of things, food borne botulism is not considered to be a major cause of food borne illness. SOURCES: In recent years, there has not been a reported outbreak associated with home-canned food, probably because we have been quite diligent about sharing proper home canning procedures with consumers. Historically, as you well know, low-acid canned foods have been associated with botulism. However, recent outbreaks have involved foods not usually associated with botulism, such as: 1977 — 59 cases — home-canned peppers 1978 — 34 cases — potato salad 1984 — 38 cases — sautéed onions 1985 — 36 cases — garlic in oil MORTALITY RATE: The current mortality rate of food borne botulism is about 13 percent. TREATMENT: Intravenous administratio
