The summer heat is still lingering even as fall arrives, and with such unremittingly high temperatures, foods spoil easily and bacteria grow rapidly. With Mid-Autumn Festival barbeques right around the corner, it means people will be eating more meat than usual, which increases the chances of eating spoiled or unsanitary meat products and subsequently increases the chances of getting acute gastroenteritis. Doctors are reminding people to be vigilant in protecting their bowels during all the festivities, avoiding burnt foods or eating excessive amounts of the same kind of meat, and making sure meats are well-cooked.
Tsai An-shun, a doctor in Changhua Hospital’s Department of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, says that according to his clinical experience, the number of patients in the emergency room for acute gastroenteritis usually soars during the Mid-Autumn Festival, which falls on Sept. 30 this year. The majority of gastroenteritis cases are bacterial or viral, the symptoms of which include nausea, vomiting, abdominal pains and diarrhea. In severe cases, fevers occur with dehydration due to a severe loss of fluids, which can cause the body to go into shock.
Bacterial and viral gastroenteritis are usually caused by E. Coli, salmonella, or Staphylococcus aureus. The symptoms for both types are quite similar, the difference being that bacterial gastroenteritis causes damage to the lining of the small intestine, and patients might experience bloody stools. Viral gastroenteritis also changes the intestinal walls’ permeability, causing a loss of fluids and electrolytes, diarrhea and even watery stool.
Photo: Chang Tsung-chiu, Liberty Times
照片：自由時報記者張聰秋
The majority of gastroenteritis cases are easily treatable, but people on dialysis, with high blood pressure, heart disease, or autoimmune disorders should be particularly careful.
Even when dining with people in the same setting, eating exactly the same thing, some people will get sick while others are unaffected because people have different constitutions, resistance and immunity levels. People are also more likely to get gastroenteritis if they eat too many high-protein or fatty foods. The best way to keep your bowel healthy is to eat appropriate amounts of grilled meats, only having a little of each kind and not eating too much of one thing. The foods also need to be well-cooked but not burnt so as to avoid eating harmful carcinogens.
(Liberty Times, Translated by Kyle Jeffcoat)
時序雖已入秋，但天氣依然炎熱如夏，食物因不懈的高溫作怪容易腐敗孳生細菌，隨著中秋節烤肉聚餐時機到來，民眾容易因為吃到不新鮮或不乾淨的烤肉食品而讓急性腸胃炎找上門。醫師提醒民眾，過節保「胃」戰就從食物下手，不吃烤焦的食物，不要一次過量攝取相同的烤肉食品，且要烤得熟透才可下肚。
署立彰化醫院肝膽腸胃科主治醫師蔡安順表示，根據臨床經驗，中秋節前後，醫院急診室急性腸胃炎病例激增，多數都是因為飲食受到污染造成的細菌型和毒素型急性腸胃炎，這兩種型態的急性腸胃炎發病症狀都是噁心、嘔吐、腹痛、水瀉等，嚴重者還會發燒，甚至因水份流失過多，出現脫水現象，造成休克。
細菌型和毒素型急性腸胃炎大都是感染大腸桿菌、沙門氏菌、金黃色葡萄球菌等造成，兩者發病症狀雷同，差異在於細菌型急性腸胃炎會造成腸壁損傷，病人可能解出血絲便，毒素型急性腸胃炎因病菌過度刺激腸子，改變腸壁穿透性，造成水份和電解質流失，導致腹瀉甚至拉水瀉。
絕大多數急性腸胃炎病患針對症狀治療很快可復原，不過洗腎病人、高血壓、心臟病、自體免疫功能差者要格外小心。
同一個聚餐場合，吃相同的食物，有人會發病、有人卻沒事，這跟個人體質、抵抗力、免疫功能有關；如果吃太多高蛋白、高油脂食物，也很容易出現腸胃炎的症狀。保健之道就是適量攝取烤肉架上的食品，每樣都吃一點，不要大量吃進相同的食物，且食物要烤熟，但不要烤焦，以免吃進有害身體的致癌物。
（自由時報記者張聰秋）
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