Polvoron, Pastil, mushrooms down more than 20 persons

KIDAPAWAN CITY - More than 20 persons have been hospitalized due to alleged food poisoning case in North Cotabato and Maguindanao, officials said today.Six of them were from Pikit, North Cotabato, according toTahira Kalantongan, the Municipal Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Officer (MDRRMO). They wererushed to Cruzado Medical Clinic after eating cooked rice during breakfast in Barangay Kabasalan. Kalantongan said the victims experienced nausea, stomach ache and loose bowel movement few hours after consuming the alleged contaminated cooked rice they bought in Pikit Public Market. Kalantongan said two children, aged 8 and 12, remained in the observation room ofhospital while there six other relatives have been discharged after initialmedications. We will submit the rice samples for examination to determine whether it was the real cause of food poisoning,” Kalantongan said. Dr. Edwin Cruzado, Pikit health officer, said prior to poisoning in Kabasalan village, four people were admitted earllier to Cruzado Hospital for alleged food poisoning. The victims complained of stomach aches and vomiting after they consumed steamed ricewith minced chicken, locally known as pastil” they bought in nearby Kabacan town. Three people from the Pagalungan town in Maguindanao also landed in the hospital after eating pulvoron. The victims were also rush to a hospital in Pikit. Cruzado said the victims suffered gastroenteritis but symptoms of food poisoning were also present. Meantime in Matalam town at least a dozen individuals were also down after eating wild mushrooms they harvested in their farm. The victims were admitted in Arakan Valley District Hospital in Arakan, North Cotabato after they experienced severe stomach ache and nausea. Gerlyn Oyson, chief nurse in Arakan Valley District Hospital, said thevictims were confined due to symptoms of food poisoning. We immediately gave them medical attention and following day they were released, Oyson said. Oyson disclosed that based on their investigation the victims allegedly ate steamed mushroom during breakfast. The effect was abrupt as they suffered abdominal pain right after eating, a sign of food poisoning, Oyson said. Health officials in North Cotabato and Maguindanao have conducted separate laboratory tests samples taken from the leftover food and from patients' discharges.