Warm weather cause highest salmonella levels in 5 years in Scotland

According to Health Protection Scotland, there were 223 cases of stomach bug reported in the first 4 month of this year, compared 133 during the same period last year. Some experts believe the milder weather is likely to have caused this increase.

A microbiology lecturer at Cambridge University, Dr Pietro Mastroeni, says that the unusual warm weather experienced over the last few weeks has meant that more people are having barbecues, which increased the risk of food not being properly cooked.

“It’s quite significant. It’s usually the barbecue season when we see an increase, but it’s a bit early in the year. The warmer weather could be a factor,” he says, adding that when meat is cooked on a barbeque, the bacteria is mixed into the centre of the meat, and if it’s undercooked it can cause disease.