Spinach is a flowering annual plant that grows approximately three feet tall and has triangular-based leaves and yellow-green flowers. Spinach is classified as Spinacia oleracea but you’re probably more familiar with its original Persian name: ??????
Spinach, especially when eaten fresh – say, right out of one of those pre-packaged bags purchased at your local supermarket – has high nutritional value. It contains Vitamin A, Vitamin C, Vitamin E, folic acid, opioid peptides, and important antioxidants. Spinach is also a rich source of iron that allows you to clobber Bluto and rescue Olive Oyl from the top of a Clipper ship.
The other special thing about spinach? It kills you. Today the Food and Drug Administration reported 49 cases of E.coli illness and one case of E.coli death linked to bagged raw spinach.
So far the reported cases are in eight states: Wisconsin, Connecticut, Idaho, Indiana, Michigan, New Mexico, Oregon and Utah. Luckily these states aren’t spread all over the map.
E. coli lives in the intestines of cattle and other animals which is why it makes so much sense that it’s in your bagged spinach.
Adorable Girlfriend says
September 15, 2006 at 12:50 pmIt’s very scary. I heard about it on NPR.
blue girl says
September 16, 2006 at 6:35 pmGood thing I don’t care about eating food with any sort of nutritional value whatsoever. I always knew it could kill you.
Lately I’ve been hooked on Whippets! They’re these really delicious, processed cookies. I can eat the WHOLE BOX in one sitting!
Horray for me!
E. coli lives in the intestines of cattle and other animals which is why it makes so much sense that it’s in your bagged spinach.
🙂
club says
September 6, 2007 at 1:18 amI’ve just been letting everything pass me by , but so it goes. I just don’t have much to say these days. Pfft. I can’t be bothered with anything. More or less nothing seems worth doing. I haven’t gotten much done recently, but oh well.
channel says
September 24, 2007 at 8:12 amRural development is the main cause of wildfires
john says
October 9, 2007 at 4:13 amMidriff shirts should be, should not be banned at school – Or choose other arousing clothing parts for another persuasive speech topic