Help! My dd ate raw chicken!!!

[maymorales]

I was cooking chicken parmesan tonight and my dd took a big chunk of the chicken that was sauteed (but half done) meant to go into the oven. so there was a big chunk of it in the middle still pink. I didn't know she took it until my dh freaked out that she's consuming raw meat!

I'm really worried. Tell me what signs to watch out for and if there are any symptoms that can be easily overlooked.

Is it a sure thing that she'll get something, i.e. a virus (med terms escape me)?

TIA!

[Artichokie]

Originally Posted by motheringtao

I was cooking chicken parmesan tonight and my dd took a big chunk of the chicken that was sauteed (but half done) meant to go into the oven. so there was a big chunk of it in the middle still pink. I didn't know she took it until my dh freaked out that she's consuming raw meat!

I'm really worried. Tell me what signs to watch out for and if there are any symptoms that can be easily overlooked.

Is it a sure thing that she'll get something, i.e. a virus (med terms escape me)?

TIA!

How old is your daughter?

The risk in eating raw chicken is the chance she'll get a bacterial infection. The bacteria would be salmonella or camplyobactor. It is not a sure thing that she'll get sick, because not all chicken is contaminated, and even if the chicken was contaminated, your daughter could fight off the germies.

Things to look for:
-diarrhea
-fever
-vomiting

It is not something to take lightly; when my DP was 11 years old, he got camplyobactor from eating under cooked chicken and spent three days in the hospital with IV antibiotics. I'm not sure how long it might take her to show symptoms, and I don't know if giving her meds before the symptoms appear would help at all. If you have a HCP, you should give her/him a call in the morning to see if being proactive could help her, or if it is better to wait and see.

My DP's situation was extreme, though. As a boy scout, he had to kill a chicken and cook it on a camp fire. : The chicken didn't get cooked thoroughly and there wasn't adequate sanitation.

[maymorales]

gee, got so frazzled forgot to include her age. she's 7. she's active and healthy. this just happened an hour ago.
my ds (2) is sick with a cold. so I'm just a little overwhelmed right now. doesn't help that my dh is freaking out and blaming me that she grabbed a piece of raw chicken while I was cooking. i didn't see her. totally guilting...:
thanks for the post.

[maymorales]

i don't like to do traditional doc and in our new little town, no NHP.
i'm hoping my chicken was a little bit more sanitary than your dp's boy scout cookout.

if anyone has links / resources where I can find some preventive measure, i'd love to hear them.

I'm contemplating giving her some astragalus tea (huang qi) but am not sure if she's too young for that.

TIA!

[sbgrace]

I'm sorry dh is blaming you. I could see one of my boys doing that very thing. You didn't do anything wrong. He's just scared.
I think I would go out right now and get some heavy duty probiotic. I'm not sure what would be best for that particular bacteria but culturelle is widely available at drug stores and heavy duty and colonizes well. I'd give her a lot of that (as in at least one capsule evening, one night--you can take the stuff out and give it mixed with cold food or straight on a spoon if she can't swallow capsules). I'd maybe even think of using p73 oregano oil (the p73 would be important). The oregano oil would be natural antibiotic though. If you wanted to do that you would maybe take culturelle morning, oregano oil mid-day, culturelle again a few hours after the oregano oil.
As the pp said, there is no guarantee that particular chicken had either bacteria. Camplyobactor would be the more likely. Both less likely if it was organic/antibiotic free. And even if it had it she might not get sick; that's why I would super do the probiotics. But the risk is there. Watch out for signs within the next 2-5 days--fever, diarrhea, vomitting, unwell..that sort of thing. I hope she stays well. Go easy on yourself. This stuff happens. I'd keep up with the probiotics for a while--maybe a couple of weeks--even if she seems well. I'd also take her in if she shows signs she is sick.
As you look for preventative things think about this as potential bacterial infection exposure. Might look into getting some florastor too in addition to the culturelle. I picked those two because they colonize and also they are effective against some really nasty bacterias--like c. diff. So would be good choices here too I imagine. I couldn't find particular strains for camplyobactor in a real quick search but you could look. I'd start her on probiotics this evening though.

[artemis33]

I'd definitely go for some strong probiotics if she isn't already taking them. Plain yogurt or kefir in the meantime (or in addition).

I'm not sure about astragalus tea specifically, but there is some in the herbal tincure mix I've been giving to my 2yo DD for her cold and her ND ped said it was okay. (it even has rec'd doses for 1-2yo and up on the bottle) - so it is probably ok to do the tea.

Garlic might help too as a natural anti- microbial.

Hopefully your chicken wasn't contaminated and she won't get sick at all :

[jrayn]

is everything okay???

[Artichokie]

Originally Posted by motheringtao

gee, got so frazzled forgot to include her age. she's 7. she's active and healthy. this just happened an hour ago.
my ds (2) is sick with a cold. so I'm just a little overwhelmed right now. doesn't help that my dh is freaking out and blaming me that she grabbed a piece of raw chicken while I was cooking. i didn't see her. totally guilting...:
thanks for the post.

((hugs)) Since she is an active kid with a healthy immune system, she has a great chance of fighting off the bacteria, on the off chance that the chicken is contaminated. I second the probiotics, and I would offer her lots and lots of fluids (water) to flush her system and keep her hydrated.

It is a shame that your DP is blaming you. Kids are impulsive and get into things - you can't hover over them constantly!

[Mirzam]

Honestly, I would be thrilled if my children would eat raw chicken -- raw meat is highly beneficial. There is no reason to think she would get sick from it, but to persuade you would would take more time than I have right now. So my advice, FWIW, is let it go, she will be absolutely fine.

[Science Mom]

Yes, Campylobactor and Salmonella are the most common organisms in chicken. Even if you observe mild symptoms, please be sure to practise very good hygiene as the bacteria is in the feces and can infect other family members even worse. The second poster provided some excellent information. Hope all is well.

SM

[lindberg99]

Don't stress about it. She didn't eat a whole lot and the meat was partially cooked.

It is most likely that if she get anything (which she probably won't), she would get a Campylobacter infection. I think the PP's partner's experience with this was an extreme case. Most cases, while not fun, are mild enough to be treated at home. It is the most common bacterial cause of food poisoning in the US but you don't hear much about it because usually people don't go to the doctor so it isn't reported.

I worked with Campy in the lab for 3 years and no one in our lab ever got sick from it.

Here's some general info: http://www.kidshealth.org/parent/inf...ylobacter.html