Felled By Peanut Butter

I'm sure you're reading this title, thinking, "Does she mean she got slammed by the recent peanut butter recall?"

More than we might have originally thought.

In my last blog, I talked quite a lot about how my departure from my former running lifestyle had put me so far off the path of excellent health that I got slammed by the stomach flu.

Well, it may be that it wasn't the flu at all.

I found out yesterday that my Clif Bars, my favorites--chocolate chip peanut crunch, or whatever they are called--were potentially part of the recall. So I went to look at what I had left, to see whether the ones I had were in fact from the suspect batch.

They were.

Last week, on Monday or Tuesday I think, I had one of the suspect bars. A day and a half or two later--totally within the incubation period for salmonella--I got slammed with the worst stomach cramps, diarrhea, and vomiting I have ever had.

Even in April of 2006, I didn't throw up. I just don't do that. This time, however, I did.

I remember also that one of those days, Maddy ate part of one of my bars. She didn't like it however so I got her a chocolate brownie bar...and she ended up sick right along with me. I don't remember if it was the same week; if it was, it makes it very suspect.

Also, at the same time I had my Clif bar, I gave Kara a nip of it as well, because she was asking for a piece. She only had a little of that corner I gave her, and then chucked the rest...but then within a day, she was also down with the same thing I had (but thankfully without the severe cramps that had me on the floor). She actually got it before the rest of us did, but then again...she's a toddler, too.

So...was it salmonella? Maybe? Possibly. It's definitely within the realm of possibility. At this point, we can't know for sure, because it's been over a week. They could try to do the testing but it's like closing the barn door after the horse has already bolted--we don't know that we would find anything. The time to test it was when I was in the throes of it, but we didn't know at that point about the recall on Clif bars. Argh!

That's the other thing that makes us, including Auntie Sue (the nurse) wonder if it was salmonella--I am still a bit nauseated from time to time, and it doesn't take that long to get over stomach flu. It was almost a solid week before I could try "real" food...I got sick Wednesday night last week, and I first ate a meal of "real food"--half a burrito--on Wednesday. Until then it was two or three days of Smarties and flat soda; then it was bananas, rice, applesauce, toast, juice, flat soda, and pasta. That was it.

I haven't been that sick in years and years and years.

Anyway, so I'm pretty torqued at the Clif company. I like their bars because at least some of it is organic. I realize to make everything organic would require raising prices, but if they hadn't gotten their peanut butter from the company that made the tainted stuff, this might not have happened to me.

To think...sometimes Karalyn has some of my Clif Bar.

The state of our food supply is scandalous. When every couple months you have people dying over food, there is something seriously wrong.

Anyway, so this weekend I need to go back to Costco, because that's where I bought my bars. Most of them have been eaten, and I half expect them to give me grief because of what I'm bringing back.

If they do, I'll offer to let them take care of my medical bills instead. That ought to get their attention.

Grr. I'm so annoyed. Time to just start making my own, I guess. I already make my own peanut butter.

It's a sorry world when food kills.

Just a thought.