Azra Hoosen | ah@radioislam.co.za
4 September 2024 | 12:30 CAT
2 min read

The Gauteng Department of Health has issued a critical alert for parents and caregivers to be vigilant following a distressing rise in food poisoning cases among children. Tragically, two siblings, aged 4 and 6, died from a suspected foodborne illness after consuming a meal of pap and soup.

This incident is part of a troubling trend, with 207 cases reported since February 2024, resulting in 10 deaths. The department emphasises the urgent need for heightened caution to protect children, particularly in townships, informal settlements, and hostels, where these cases are increasingly prevalent.

Tebogo Matjokotja, Deputy Director of Communicable Disease Control and Outbreaks, told Radio Islam that while there has been a rise in food poisoning cases, they have discovered that two of the fatalities may have been caused by intentional poisoning. This revelation is deeply concerning.

Matjokotja pointed out that in most cases, some of the trends from last year show that some of the foods that were poisoned were because of the way it was handled during preparation or the way they were placed in the shops or chemicals used in shops when trying to trap mice.

“We are urging parents and people who are preparing food, should wash their hands before they touch any food to avoid cross-contamination,” she said.

According to Matjokotja, this issue extends beyond health concerns; it involves significant psychological factors as well. She stated that they are collaborating with the Department of Social Development to investigate further.

She noted that while understanding people are faced with many problems and daily stress, it is important to recognise that stress does not justify taking a life.

Matjokotja encourages better food safety education and urges people to be cautious before consuming items.

“We need to educate kids about food safety and urge them to wash items bought from stores. We want to communicate that as much as we are doing food safety campaigns in the townships, people need to know about their food safety. We need to be vigilant about taking items that are red-tagged. We need to put dangerous chemicals as far away as possible and look after our children,” she said.

LISTEN to the full interview with Radio Islam and Tebogo Matjokotja, Deputy Director of Communicable Disease Control and Outbreaks, here.