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Mouth Diseases

Nasty Mouth

03/29/2010

Question:

Hello,

I was at a restaurant recently and I ordered a burger. As I was eating it, there was a piece of a rubber glove within the burger. I assumed it was from when they were preparing the burger. However I am starting to freak out about what if someone lost their HAND in the meat grinder and I ate it. I went out got some mouthwash, and I didnt eat anything the rest of the night. Can I get any diseases of the mouth, or anything for that matter, from this? Especially if somehow I ate cooked human flesh.

Should I consult a doctor?

thank you

Answer:

It would be highly unlikely that you contracted anything, including diseases of the mouth, from your experience. Burgers are typically cooked to at least a "medium" degree of doneness, which would be sufficient to kill or inactivate the overwhelming majority of microorganism, assuming any were present to begin with.

If you want to consult your doctor for additional peace of mind, that would be fine.

For more information:

Go to the Mouth Diseases health topic, where you can:

Response by:

Carl M Allen, DDS, MSD Carl M Allen, DDS, MSD
Professor of Oral Pathology
College of Dentistry
The Ohio State University