Ready-to-eat foods as a possible source of Helicobacter pylori

Ready-to-eat (RTE) foods can be risky for consumers as they are not usually cooked or heated before consumption. We set out to assess RTE foods available in the Czech market network as a possible source of Helicobacter pylori. Attention was paid to RTE foods containing at least one ingredient of animal origin. A total of 50 food samples were chosen and divided into 3 categories. The "composite foods" category (n = 29) included sandwiches (n = 5), baguettes (n = 11), tortillas (n = 6), buns (n = 2), toast bread (n = 1), croissant (n = 1), bagels (n = 2), and pretzel (n = 1). The "salads" category included commercially produced mixed salads (n = 13). The "other" category (n = 8) included smoked salmon (n = 2), smoked mackerel (n = 2), smoked herring (n = 1), marinated salmon (n = 1), surimi (n = 1) and carpaccio (n = 1). The samples were analysed using nested-PCR. The glmM gene of H. pylori was detected in 50% (n = 25) of all samples. The "composite foods" category had the highest number of positive samples 58.6% (n = 21), followed by "other" with 50% (n = 4), and "salads" with 30.8% (n = 4). The results of our study showed that consumers eating RTE foods may be exposed to a risk of infection with H. pylori.