Onions become a cause of concern in the United States and Canada

Onions have become a cause of concern in the United States and Canada. The health agencies in both countries have put out alerts asking its citizens to discard onions supplied by California-based Thomson International Inc, linking a salmonella bacteria infection with the bulb.

Daily Current Affairs Quiz 2020

Key-points

The salmonella bacteria resides in animals.

When it enters a human body it causes salmonellosis, an infection that attacks the intestine, and can cause diarrhoea, abdominal pain, fever, vomiting, bleeding in stool and nausea.

The symptoms of the infection last anywhere between 2 and 7 days. However, bowel function could sometimes take months before returning to normalcy. In some cases, it spreads the infection from the intestine to the blood stream.

The infection hits children, below the age of five, and senior citizens the worst. Salmonella can transmit to humans through contaminated water or food.