The long term effects of foodborne illness can be as nasty as the acute symptoms. The consequences last a lifetime in certain cases. According to The Press and Journal an Aberdeenshire woman, Lois Reid has been dealing with the effects of an E. coli O157 illness since she was two.
She’s now 22 and is graduating from college.
After a kidney transplant at age six.
And kidney failure again this year.
Earlier this year, in March, Lois Reid, from Old Rayne, was approaching the end of her second and final year studying legal services at the North East Scotland College when she was admitted to hospital with kidney failure.
When she was just two-years-old, Ms Reid caught e-coli which led to her having to undergo a kidney transplant at the age of six (here’s some old coverage that details the story 15 years ago -ben).
The average lifespan of a replacement kidney is between eight and 12 years and after 15, Ms Reid’s stopped working.
Tomorrow, the 22-year-old graduates from college and says she couldn’t believe it when she found out she had passed the course.
She said: “I was over the moon, and so relieved. I was so nervous to open my results because I didn’t think I would have passed.
“I phoned my mum straight away and she cried.”
Ms Reid spent six weeks in hospital as doctors tried to save her kidney.
She added: “Life is pretty busy between my dialysis, university and working part-time but I’m really glad I came to college and proud that I have achieved my HND.
It’s messed up that a healthy kid eats something that was contaminated and then deals with the effects for 20+ years, not knowing whether her kidney would be saved. That’s the kind of thing folks should be thinking about when handling food on the farm or in the kitchen – or places in between.