I was a victim once again of theft in my neighborhood. I had my books stolen out of my car this past weekend and my sons video games that we had just that night gotten back from the ex boyfriend. I had just got home and was in the process of unloading my car and had to stop to use the restroom and in less than ten minutes time I had my car rifled through. It is one thing to have to replace games due to wear and tear,yet another to have to replace them due to someones total lack of disrespect for someone else's property.

I have had enough as of this writing and am taking steps to be out of here before my lease is up. I had planned on writing more about goal setting this week, but the notes I had wanted to use for my column were in my bag so instead I am going to write a brief column this week on what I was able to find out about E coli in my biology lab.

E coli or Escherichia coli is a normal bacteria found in your intestine and provides the vitamin K you need for good health. It is also the most thoroughly studied organism in all of biology. It serves as a blueprint for research on macromolecule synthesis,regulation of enzymes and genetics. Also it is important to note that due to it's simple cell structure it can divide every 20 to 30 minutes so it can spread fast as it continues to double and divide. E. coli also synthesizes DNA continuously through its lifetime. E. coli joins streptococcus and treponemapallidum (Syphilis) as the three basic forms of bacteria. E coli is characterized as a rod shaped bacteria, strep is a spherical shaped bacteria and Syphillis is a corkscrew type bacteria which is primarily found in the brain.

The reason E. coli can be dangerous to humans is that if it gets out of our intestines it can cause a condition called septicemia which in turn leads to septic shock. Basically it can kill you much like what happens when one appendix burst. E. coli contamination in meat is caused by mishandling meat during meat production and packaging and not maintaning proper standards to keep disease causing pathogens out of meat that is being processed, packaged and shipped out. So if you have a crate of meat that has been contaminated with E. coli in the meat packing plant by the time it gets to your grocers freezer it has plenty of time to multiply and spread making the already diseased meat more dangerous.

For those who follow my blog I report a lot on food recalls. I have done my fair share in just the past few months on E. coli and meat recalls alone.

There is another reason I wanted to write about this and that is my grandmother was victim to septicemia it took her life in about two weeks time. She had an ostomy appliance removed several years prior to her death and they left a piece of plastic in her intestinal wall that eventually ate a hole through her intestinal lining and her intestinal fluid to slowly seep out into her body. It was a progression over time of issues relating to this that culminated in her demise.That is why I am proactive in my health and always ask questions and follow up with my doctor to make sure we are on the same page with a treatment plan.

Have a good one.

Joe