MORE products have been added to the list of items recalled due to possible traces of the bacterium salmonella.

Tesco's 'Tesco Free From 5 Belgium Chocolate Wafer' was recalled last week.

Now Kelkin Milk Chocolate Break Wafers 'free from' Gluten and Bakers Delight has recalled its 'free from' Enjoy Gluten Free Wafer Fingers have been recalled.

Salmonella can cause food poisoning.

The chocolate wafers are sold in Sainsbury's stores and the wafer fingers are in Waitrose.

The Food Standards Agency (FSA) issued the following statement on the chocolate wafers: "Valeo Foods has recalled the above product on a precautionary basis. The potentially affected batch is only sold in Sainsbury's stores in the UK. Sainsbury's has displayed point-of-sale recall notices in stores. These notices tell customers about the recall and advise them of what actions to take if they have bought the product. 

"No other Kelkin products are known to be affected."

On the wafer fingers, the FSA said: "Bakers Delight has recalled all packs of the above product on a precautionary basis. The recalled product is only sold in Waitrose stores in the UK. Waitrose will be displaying point-of-sale recall notices in stores. These notices tell customers about the recall and explain what action to take if they have bought the product. 

"No other Bakers Delight products are known to be affected."

 

What are the symptoms and how long do they last?

Symptoms include diarrhoea, stomach cramps and sometimes vomiting and fever.

On average, it takes from 12 to 72 hours for the symptoms to develop after swallowing an infectious dose of salmonella.

Symptoms usually last for four to seven days and most people recover without treatment.

But if you become seriously ill, you may need hospital care because the dehydration caused by the illness can be life-threatening.

Who gets salmonella?

Anyone can get salmonella, but young children, the elderly and people who have immune systems that are not working properly (including people with cancer, AIDS or alcoholism) have a greater risk of becoming severely ill.

How do you get infected with salmonella?

You usually get salmonella by eating contaminated food. Salmonella bacteria live in the gut of many farm animals and can affect meat, eggs, poultry and milk. Other foods like green vegetables, fruit and shellfish can become contaminated through contact with manure in the soil or sewage in the water.

Contamination is also possible if raw and cooked foods are stored together. Most tortoises and terrapins and other pet reptiles can also carry salmonella. Dogs, cats and rodents can occasionally become infected.

It is impossible to tell from its appearance whether food is contaminated with salmonella. It will look, smell and taste normal.

Salmonella can be spread from person to person by poor hygiene, by failing to wash your hands properly after going to the toilet, or after handling contaminated food.

How do you treat salmonella?

It is important to drink plenty of fluids as diarrhoea or vomiting can lead to dehydration and you can lose important sugars and minerals from your body. Your doctor may recommend a rehydration solution, available from your pharmacist.

Sometimes severe cases are treated with antibiotics. If you are given antibiotics, it is essential that you complete the course as prescribed.