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The VICE Guide to Right Now

Welcome to the Summer of Salmonella and Gastro!

A heat wave has brought on a hellish spate of food poisonings, gastroenteritis, and salmonella across NSW.
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Summer, you spend all year dreaming about it. Open skies, the smell of eucalyptus, baking on hot sand, the sound of rosellas echoing around you. Hey, put your hand up if you’ve been reading a lot of Robert Drew lately? Just kidding. The reality is when it arrives and you’re like, “what the fuck is this shit?” It’s hot, you’re uncomfortable, and if you live in NSW you probably also have raging gastro.

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That’s right, the Sydney Morning Herald have reported that the state has seen a spike in salmonella poisonings since November—201 cases and counting to be specific. The jump is largely thought to be tied to the warming weather. As your high school food tech teacher explained, there is nothing salmonella loves more than a tepid meal of animal products on a hot day. Australia actually has a pretty well documented issue with salmonella-infused summers. Last year, there were 1,391 cases reported in NSW alone by the time we hit Autumn. And considering the state is about to enter a much anticipated heatwave, which will see temperatures graze the 40s, it’s not surprising health workers are warning people to be careful.

Basically that means cook your food properly, wash your hands, and keep stuff in the fridge. For more food storage advice just call a parental figure, they always understand this stuff.

Hopefully we won’t get too close to last year’s record setting 4,445 cases of gut rot aka salmonellosis. But if you do get it, look on the bright side—you’re gonna look hell skinny in your bathers.

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