Household food poisoning is a common phenomenon. Every housewife has highly toxic additives on the kitchen shelf. One of these substances is vinegar essence. Despite the imaginary safety and environmental friendliness, this is a very dangerous substance. Acetic essence poisoning is one of the leading food additive poisonings.
Main types and properties of vinegar
Acetic acid is a food preservative with a complex chemical molecular structure. There are the following varieties:
- Apple vinegar essence at a minimum concentration brings only help to the human body. Traditional medicine recommends drinking on an empty stomach a solution of a teaspoon of apple cider vinegar in a glass of clean cool water as an anti-inflammatory and antibacterial agent. Intoxication of the body begins with the use of 100 ml of pure 5% apple cider vinegar essence. Possible burns of the esophagus, gastric mucosa and damage to internal organs.
- Wine vinegar in small doses is an excellent prophylactic for diseases of the cardiovascular system. Widely used in Japanese cuisine. It has a bright tart aroma. An overdose dangerous to he alth occurs when taking more than 30 ml of 5% essence.
- Balsamic vinegar doctors forbid to use even in tiny amounts for people with diseases of the gastrointestinal tract. Despite its bright taste properties, poisoning occurs most quickly in case of an overdose.
- Table vinegar is a 9% solution of acetic acid. This is the most dangerous solution, as it usually has an extremely high concentration of acid (from 15% and above). It should be carefully protected from children and not stored at all in a house where there are mentally unhe althy people. Often people who are prone to this kind of actions prefer to poison themselves with table vinegar. The lethal dose of such a solution, subject to an acid concentration of 10-15%, is 100-150 ml.
What is it used for in cooking?
Acetic acid is a colorless liquid with a pungent odor and astringent taste. Mixes up to a homogeneous consistence with many solvents. Inadvertent ingestion of the pure essence is difficult due to the strong odor of this acid and the severe irritant effect on the respiratory tract. Alas, poisoning with vinegar essence is one of the most common causes of household mortality.
Acetic essence is widely used in the preparation of dough products (together with baking soda - as a baking powder). Experienced housewives use it when kneading dough for pancakes, the base for homemade pizza, adding tart flavors to rice, for soaking cold cuts before frying barbecue.
Possible causes of intoxication
Vinegar solution is often drunk by people in a state of extreme intoxication. It is they who are not able to feel the pungent smell and sour taste. It often happens that a drunk person wants to achieve even greater euphoria, and in search of funds, he decides on desperate deeds. Many uneducated people still believe that vinegar essence can increase the degree of an alcoholic drink. Of course, this opinion is completely wrong.
The second reason is taking vinegar in high dosages due to ignorance. This is typical for children and teenagers. For example, apple cider vinegar has a rather pleasant flavor (especially a 5% solution) and toddlers might think it's juice.
In some cases, poisoning with acetic essence vapors in culinary and technological industries is possible. This is a direct non-compliance with safety instructions.
Effects of vinegar on the body
On supermarket shelves, the product is stored at a concentration of 5-10%. A lethal dose of 10% vinegar is about 200 ml (this amount varies depending on gender, weight and he alth). Essence can be used in production and professional restaurantsconcentration up to 70% - a dangerous dose of such a solution is even less - about 20-50 ml.
Don't try to use vinegar for medicinal purposes on your own. Even a relatively safe solution of apple cider vinegar in small quantities can lead to intoxication in people with chronic liver and thyroid diseases.
First symptoms of vinegar essence poisoning
What you should pay attention to first of all (external manifestations of intoxication):
- a person does not have enough air, he begins to breathe eagerly;
- the skin turns pale, and a bright red border forms around the lips;
- fever, slight chills;
- in some cases - severe nausea, vomiting;
- profuse salivation.
Here are the medical signs of vinegar poisoning:
- the composition of the blood changes: the destruction of red blood cells with the release of hemoglobin;
- liver and kidney failure rapidly developing;
- extensive burns of the esophagus and gastric mucosa;
- unbearable pain of a burning nature in a patient (occurs when taking large doses of vinegar essence);
- blood clotting disorder.
Methods for detecting intoxication
An experienced doctor will easily make the right verdict in a matter of seconds. A sharp smell from the mouth, the characteristic appearance of the victim and complaints will not leave any doubt in the diagnosis. According to the ICD code, poisoning with vinegar essencemarked T54.2.
In some cases, the time to save the victim goes to a matter of minutes. There is no time to do blood tests, urine tests and wait for the result. Therefore, it is important to be smart and not procrastinate. Acute poisoning with vinegar essence is often fatal.
Even an unprepared person, far from medicine, will easily guess the reason for the poor he alth or excruciating pain of the victim. To do this, it will be enough to bend over to his face - a vinegar smell will clearly come from his mouth.
Three degrees of complexity of acetic acid intoxication
Medicine distinguishes the following degrees of damage to the body:
- mild degree is characterized by a low degree of intoxication, superficial burns of the esophagus, slight chills, nausea;
- in moderate cases, the stomach is significantly damaged, blood clots occur and acute renal failure may develop;
- severe degree often leads to death due to failure of the liver, gallbladder, and other organs of the gastrointestinal tract; this degree is characterized by severe burns of internal organs; the patient vomits profusely, loses consciousness, is in excruciating pain.
Providing first aid to the victim
Algorithm of actions if you suspect a person has poisoning with vinegar essence:
- Call an ambulance.
- Rinse your mouth with clean cool water, try to clear your throat. Notit is worth doing this if the patient is in agony and is in great pain.
- Don't try to "quench" an acid reaction with baking soda (a common mistake).
- No pills can be given until the doctors arrive, no food is allowed.
- Perform gastric lavage at home (if first aid provider is qualified).
Help with poisoning with vinegar essence should first of all be guided by the rule "do no harm." Attempts to drink a patient with a solution of soda, vegetable oil and other means of "folk methods for neutralizing vinegar" can lead to even greater complications. If the ambulance takes a long time to get to the scene, it is best to describe the degree of intoxication by phone and follow the instructions of the doctors.
Basic treatments
Treatment for poisoning with vinegar essence is to reduce the toxic effect of acid on internal organs.
First of all, it is gastric lavage. Then honey. the worker will intravenously inject special antidotes that can neutralize the destructive effect of the poison.
Sodium bicarbonate to restore acid-base balance is possible only under the supervision of experienced physicians, as it can cause an unexpected allergic reaction.
Further treatment is aimed at repairing damage after a toxic hit. This is the healing of internal burns, the restoration of the work of damagedorgans and systems.
Preventive measures
The basic rule of prevention: do not store concentrated solutions of vinegar essence at home! There's no point even buying them. As a last resort, if there was no low concentrated solution on the store shelf, dilute the essence yourself with clean water. From this, she will not lose her properties.
Even after that, do not store vinegar in accessible places (especially if there are children or people with mental disabilities in the house who are not aware of their actions).
The bottle must be tightly stoppered to prevent accidental spillage and gradual evaporation.
Consequences of poisoning with vinegar essence
Each case is individual and depends on the patient's age, sex and initial state of he alth. After receiving intoxication of a complex degree, the patient is threatened with lifelong disability. Even timely competent rehabilitation measures are not always able to radically change the situation.
Here are some common effects of poisoning:
- acute renal failure;
- burn of the esophagus and gastric mucosa;
- mechanical asphyxia;
- resection of part of the stomach and intestines.
First aid for poisoning with vinegar essence and a timely call for an ambulance can help save the patient's life. Gastric lavage upon receipt of first-degree intoxication is usually sufficient. If damage to organ tissues has begun, then stop the processit will be very difficult. Approximately 14% of all recorded cases of vinegar poisoning are fatal.
