Parasitoses are the most widespread
diseases in the world. They are transmited via contaminated
water or
food. Considering that the daily
consumption of
vegetables is estimated at 142g per
person, the purpose of this study was to evaluate the occurrence of
parasites in
salads available for
consumption in
restaurants in Aparecida de Goiânia, Goiás
State.
Salad samples were collected from the
restaurants and
parasitological analysis was performed using the Willis, Hoffman, Faust and Ziehl Neelsen
techniques as well as
cultures for the isolation of free-living amoebae. 51 samples were analyzed, 16 (31.4%) were positive. The
parasites detected were
Acanthamoeba spp. in 12 (23.5%); free-living
larvae,
Schistosoma mansoni and
Entamoeba coli in 1 (2.0%);
Endolimax nana in 2 (3.9%). The
PCR technique determined that 17.6% of the samples presented
Toxoplasma gondii DNA. These
techniques evidenced that the
salad samples presented
parasite contamination not only in the
restaurants with the lowest
price per Kg, but also in the most expensive ones. Therefore, in addition to effective
sanitary surveillance, prophylactic
measures are necessary regarding suppliers, handlers and
restaurant owners to prevent the spread of these and other
parasites.