Philippines DOH warns against eating dead animals
In the aftermath of Typhoon Yolanda (Haiyan), many people are hungry and food is not readily available. This has prompted a message from Assistant Health Secretary, Dr. Eric Tayag, to advise against people eating dead animals they may find.
On his Twitter feed yesterday, Tayag said, ““On eating dead animals: Hunger vs Health risks. There’s no right option for this situation but if you eat them and you fall ill, seek help.”
Image/Computer Screen Shot
He went on to say in a second tweet, “consumption of dead animals pose health risks Even when these are properly cooked health risks still remain.”
On Thursday, Dr Tayag, possibly in a unrelated post, wrote, “One can live without food for 8 weeks but one can live without water for just 8 days.”
Meanwhile, the DOH is meeting with forensic experts from around the world to establish a quick system of management of dead bodies.
“In many affected areas, many dead bodies are yet to be discovered and retrieved. And almost all that have been retrieved remain unidentified and unburied”, according to a Philippines DOH press release Friday.
However, the DOH trys to calm concerns about the infectious disease risk associated with the dead bodies.
“There has been growing fear among public that dead bodies will cause illness. Health Secretary Enrique Ona explained that dead bodies do not cause epidemics. Most infectious germs do not survive beyond 48 hours. Body handlers can wear gloves when they handle bodies and must wash their hands as precautionary measure.”
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[…] Saturday, the Philippines Department of Health warned against Typhoon victims eating dead animals found after the […]