-Caveat Lector- <A HREF="http://www.ctrl.org/"> </A> -Cui Bono?- http://urbanlegends.about.com/culture/urbanlegends/library/blbananas.htm Flesh-Eating Bananas! Guide's note: (Updated 01/31/00) Pure, laughable bunk. Can anybody tell me where the Manheim Research Institute is located? If so, please drop me a line, because I haven't been able to find a shred of evidence that it exists. Necrotizing fasciitis. The name alone is enough to give you the heebie-jeebies. Also known as "the flesh-eating disease" (much easier to pronounce than "neck-row-tie-zing fash-ee-eye-tis"), it's a real - but rare - illness resulting from infection by the Group A streptococcus bacterium, which also causes strep throat. It attacks the soft tissues under the skin, resulting in gangrene. Amputation is sometimes required, and it can cause death. It's a nasty disease, no question about it. But, while it is possible to contract Strep A by ingesting food that has been directly contaminated (e.g., during the preparation of a meal - see sidebar for more about this), the notion that an entire crop of fruit could be infectious is patently absurd. The allegation that "the disease has been able to graft itself to the skin of fruits" is pseudo-scientific twaddle. According to the Centers for Disease Control: Group A streptococci are spread by direct contact with secretions from the nose and throat of infected persons or by contact with infected wounds or sores on the skin. The risk of spreading the infection is highest when a person is ill, such as with "strep throat" or an infected wound. Translation: you can eat Costa Rican bananas without fear of them eating you. The email warning is a hoax. Updates: Statement from the Centers for Disease Control "False Internet report about necrotizing fasciitis associated with bananas" Statement from the International Banana Association "This rumor is false and has no scientific or medical basis of truth" Sources: Necrotizing Fasciitis. National Institutes of Health. 20 Jan. 2000 Group A Streptococcus. Centers for Disease Control. 20 Jan. 2000 National Necrotizing Fasciitis Foundation. 20 Feb. 2000 Sidebar: A Firsthand Account of Food-Borne Group A Strep. 1 Feb. 2000 We are about to go on a Journey. All Aboard http://sites.netscape.net/gsussnzl/poleshift <A HREF="http://www.ctrl.org/">www.ctrl.org</A> DECLARATION & DISCLAIMER ========== CTRL is a discussion & informational exchange list. Proselytizing propagandic screeds are not allowed. Substance—not soap-boxing! These are sordid matters and 'conspiracy theory'—with its many half-truths, misdirections and outright frauds—is used politically by different groups with major and minor effects spread throughout the spectrum of time and thought. That being said, CTRL gives no endorsement to the validity of posts, and always suggests to readers; be wary of what you read. CTRL gives no credence to Holocaust denial and nazi's need not apply. Let us please be civil and as always, Caveat Lector. ======================================================================== Archives Available at: http://home.ease.lsoft.com/archives/CTRL.html http:[EMAIL PROTECTED]/ ======================================================================== To subscribe to Conspiracy Theory Research List[CTRL] send email: SUBSCRIBE CTRL [to:] [EMAIL PROTECTED] To UNsubscribe to Conspiracy Theory Research List[CTRL] send email: SIGNOFF CTRL [to:] [EMAIL PROTECTED] Om
