I don’t quite understand the concept of botulism. I’ve googled it but anytime someone mentions it I’m confused all over again. My best understanding is that it’s food poisoning but I feel like it’s more complex than that

Question

Does botulism refer to the bacteria or to the food ?

In: 10

Answer 1

It is more complex. Most if it has been covered by others, but one thing I’m seeing be missed here matters, too.

Botulinum produces an ENDOTOXIN. Endotexic bacteria store their waste (toxins) inside their cell walls (they are gram neg and anaerobic) so they don’t really release the toxin until they die and fall apart.

Salmonella, for instance is exo-toxic, and churns out toxins the whole time they are alive. You can smell and taste the food spoiling with most bacteria that are.

Consider how fast bacteria reproduce, doubling and doubling again.

So, we have Botulinum contaminated food (easy to do because it sporulates), the bacteria are quickly reproducing, but haven’t started dying off yet. Tgr food looks fine, smells fine, etc… so we cook it up, can it, bottle it etc…KILLNG AND DESTROYING THE BACTERIA, with heat, BUT RELEASING THE TOXIN! One of the worst toxins known, BTW, a toxin that will kill a huge organism with the TINIEST dose. Open the can, smells fine, looks fine, tastes fine, but paralyzes your diaphragm and ticker-timer. God help a small child.

So it’s kind of a special, insidious type of extremely deadly food poisoning.