Modern Health Concerns and Testing Procedures for Sulfates

The news reports a lot sulfates. And if you read the back of your favorite cosmetics or cleaning bottles, you may become quite confused or conflicted when you see the word in the ingredients. There are many potentially dangerous substances, both manmade and natural, that we come into contact with on a daily basis… including sulfates. But just what are sulfates, where are they found, and what types of problems can they really cause?

Testing and Tattoos: What May Be Lurking in That Ink

Anything that is consumed or applied to our bodies can contain contaminants. In most cases, the human body does a miraculous job at resisting and fighting the pathogens. But sometimes, the contaminants can lead to health complications, disease, even death. Tattoo ink has recently come before the firing line as a contaminant carrier worthy of serious attention. But what exactly does that mean for ink enthusiasts, and can testing be performed to potentially correct the concerns?

Salmonella at the Source: What You Need to Know About Your Food

Most food recalls deal directly with simple mistakes: accidental ingredient omission on labels, or marking an item as gluten-free when it’s actually a gluten source. While these mistakes can lead to problems, primarily related to allergic reactions, news reports make it seem like every recall is an all out attack on the American public. While pathogens do play a part in recalls, for the most part they only affect those people who have low immunity to the bacteria, such as children, senior citizens, pregnant women, and individuals who have immune issues due to disease. 

What Superbugs Are Lurking in Your Body?

Estimates from the World Health Organizations suggest that the usage of antibiotics over the past 70 years has added about 20 years to the average human’s lifespan. When you take an antibiotic, you expect it to do its job and attack the pathogen that’s making you ill – but that’s not always the case.

Bacteria, fungi, viruses, and other live organisms evolve over the course of time and become immune to human medications. Part of the problem is that doctors frequently over-prescribe antibiotics due to improper information received from patients or simply due to human error. As human reliance on medication increases, so does microbial resistance. Why?

Decoding DNA: Modern Practices for Winning the War on Bacteria

You’ve probably heard of genetic mapping. It’s become a medical research staple over the past few decades to help professionals decode and comprehend the growth potential and intent of modern diseases. But new breakthroughs are leading top microbiologists toward mapping the DNA of bacteria responsible for food poisoning outbreaks as well.

Salmonella, E.coli, campylobacter and listeria are the top food poisoning bacteria concerns for pregnant women. But microbiologists are currently focusing on listeria, the third top prenatal danger, since it’s found practically everywhere on the planet. Technical advances have already led to containing an outbreak responsible for one death and seven severe illnesses across the U.S.

Discovering the Differences Between Probiotics and Live Cultures

Probiotics are beneficial bacteria that can potentially aid in specific health concerns. But aiding and curing are completely different concepts. Advertising easily confuses consumers with fancy labels and the power of suggestion. Let’s face it, food manufacturers get away with more than their share of misconceptions. Advertisements love to hint that if you just buy a certain product, all of your health issues will magically disappear. But is that true? Read on for some of the more interesting Probiotic myths.

Salmonella Outbreak Victims Unite: $6.8 Million Lawsuit Makes History

On June 2, 2014 a court decision shocked the nation as one of the largest egg manufacturers in the U.S. was charged with almost $7 million in fines for their responsibility in a nationwide salmonella breakout in 2010. The owner and chief operating officer of Quality Egg LLC, 79 year old Austin DeCoster and his son, 50-year-old Peter DeCoster, are charged with knowingly selling unapproved food to commercial businesses. The act earned them each a misdemeanor. Both DeCosters were charged $100,000 fines, each, and may be convicted for up to a year in prison.

The Similarities and Differences in Modern Medications

In today’s society, medications are used and required for everything from the discomfort of a mosquito bite to treat the symptoms and unbearable pain associated with chronic disease. All forms of medication undergo some form of testing, but it may be surprising to know what that entails.

Safety First: Combating Salmonella One Test at a Time

Food contaminants are wide spread concerns which affect the health and safety of millions of Americans annually. Whether food is mishandled at the manufacturing level or unclean conditions between the factory and home are involved, the outcome can be minor to severe, depending on the actual cause of the contamination.

Listeria Takes Over the World

Improper food and substance handling from factories to store shelve have led to mass panic and true outbreaks in bacterial-based contamination of food sources. Each year it seems as though there’s a new super pathogen. Without the aid of upfront microbiology quality assurance, several pathogens and bacterial strains developed resistance to simple antibacterial and pharmaceutical treated strategies. However, if you've recently watched news or read a paper, you've likely heard another name: listeria.

Killer Cosmetics: When Rapid Microbiological Testing Can’t Be Skipped

There’s a famous quote that states if women were happier as a whole with their appearance, the cosmetic industry would be in trouble. And while there’s substance to that, the truth is that if all cosmetic manufacturers utilized microbiological quality control guidelines, there would also be less illness and premature death in the world.

Easy Microbial Mold and Yeast Removal

If you’ve ever seen dairy or flour-based food sitting on a counter too long, you’ve likely noticed changes that occur within the edible source. Mold and yeast are well known toxins that change and destroy the original quality of consumables. There are some molds that cause human illness, but most are relatively harmless to healthy people. Both yeast and mold can deteriorate any food substance they infiltrate, and even cause cramping until digestion has occurred.

Keep Fido Safe: Microbiological Testing for Pet Food

Ask any animal lover and they’ll tell you their pets are family. The 170 million pampered dogs and cats in the U.S alone that add to the annual $22 million pet food industry; which is expected to double in earnings within the next few years. People simply want to give their pets the very best lives possible, from food to fashion. The unexpected loss of a beloved pet due to bacteria-laced food is an unnecessary emotional hit to any family; which is why microbiological testing is so important to the health and happiness of your furry family members.

Microbiology Instruments Appropriate for Enzyme Testing

Enzymes are intricate, stable, globular proteins that serve as catalysts in chemical reactions. These reagents reduce the activation energy in order to increase the rate of the reaction at the same temperature. Their stability prevents them from being consumed like other reagents in the reaction. While they can accelerate chemical reactions by more than 1,000 times, the effect of enzymes can either be enhanced by promoters, or reduced by inhibitors. Most industrial enzymes are obtained from microorganisms like fungi and bacteria, though they can also be obtained from animal and plant sources, unless they are activated.

Microbiology Quality Assurance: Rapid Yeast and Mold Detection

Mold and yeast are agents which can be responsible for contamination as well as spoilage in most products. A lot of these agents can develop something known as mycotoxins which can infuse itself into the product. If this is done in large quantities, it can cause poisoning. According to the American Society for Microbiology the presence of yeast can affect the product salability and quality, which can lead to significant financial loss for the food supplier. This is why rapid yeast and mold testing is important so that your organization will remain efficient and hygienic. Microbiology quality assurance can help you detect yeast, mold and other agents that may contaminate your products.

Quality Control in the Food and Beverage Industry: The Significance of Coliform Testing

Complying with U.S Food and Drugs Administration (FDA) and Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) laws and regulations related to safe food handling and water sanitation is important for all manufacturers of food and beverage products and water bottling facilities. This is particularly essential in meat, poultry and daily industries where food items are usually at a high risk of contamination by bacteria such as salmonella, E. coli and etc.

Understanding Quality Assurance in the Food Industry: Microbiological Testing of Yogurt

While yogurt is generally viewed as a health food there are specific dangers for the consumers and the manufacturers. The most important of these is the presence of harmful microorganisms. The main investigative procedures to determine the health of yogurt is testing for yeast, mold and the presence of coliform. Traditional testing methods tend to be slow and labor intensive. This makes them unsuitable for products with a relatively short life such as yogurt. This has led to an interest in more rapid methods of determine the safety of yogurt before it is delivered to store shelves.

Rapid Microbiological Testing: Importance of E. coli Testing

Escherichia coli, which is abbreviated as E. coli, refers to the rod-shaped bacterium that occur naturally in the lower intestines of endotherms, or warm blooded organisms, including human beings, as well as reptiles and fish. While most of these gram-negative organisms are harmless, some of the serotypes can result in serious food poisoning due to food contamination, which is a common reason for product recalls. There are five strains of E. coli that cause diseases. Some of these diseases include hemolytic uremia, copious bloody discharge, unique diarrhea, and Enterohemorrhagic (EHEC) class.

Quality Assurance: Microbial Testing of Cosmetics

The number of people using cosmetics continues to grow, and the quantities consumed keep increasing every year. As the production increases, the industry is faced with great concern regarding the microbial contamination of personal care and cosmetic products. The implications of microorganism contamination include massive product waste and financial losses for the manufacturer, not to mention consumer injury or infection. While there are very few cases of the latter happening, the occurrence of such episodes can drastically impact the reputation of a brand.

Nutraceutical Rapid Microbiology Detection Systems

Consumers want quality assurance and the FDA is backing them with their cGMP guidelines. Many manufacturing companies are choosing to build in-house programs or signing up with contract labs to beat their existing microbiology quality assurance practices. As a manufacturer, you should always be prepared to test your raw materials and products for unacceptable levels of certain microorganisms.