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Botulism is a rare, but very serious condition. It's caused by toxin produced by bacteria called Clostridium botulinum. The toxins that this bacterium produces are among the most poisonous substances known to humans.

Botulism comes in three main forms, which together strike roughly 110 Americans each year:

• Food-borne botulism. The harmful bacteria thrive and produce the toxin in environments with little oxygen, such as in canned food. Home-canned foods, such as vegetables and meats, are most often the source of food-borne botulism.
• Wound botulism. If these bacteria get into a cut, they can cause a dangerous infection that produces the toxin. People have also become infected after injecting illegal drugs.
• Infant botulism. This is the most common form of botulism. It begins after Clostridium botulinum bacteria grow in a baby's intestinal tract. It typically strikes between the ages of 6 weeks and 6 months. Babies may take these bacteria, often in spore form, into their systems after they eat contaminated foods or come in contact with soil containing the bacteria's spores.

All types of botulism present medical emergencies, since they can cause death.

Signs and symptoms of food-borne botulism typically begin between 18 and 36 hours after the toxin gets into your body. Infant botulism usually produces problems within this time window, too. However, the symptoms of wound botulism typically start a week after you're exposed to the bacteria.

Signs and symptoms of food-borne and wound botulism include:

• Difficulty swallowing or speaking
• Facial weakness
• Double vision
• Trouble breathing
• Nausea, vomiting and abdominal cramps
• Paralysis

The first sign of infant botulism is often constipation. Other signs and symptoms include:

• Floppy movements due to muscle weakness, and trouble controlling the head
• Weak cry
• Drooping eyelids
• Tiredness
• Difficulty sucking or feeding
• Paralysis

The source of food-borne botulism is often home-canned foods that are low in acid, such as green beans, corn and beets. A common source of the illness in Alaska is home-canned seafood. However, cases have also occurred from chili peppers, oil infused with garlic and baked potatoes.

Wound botulism has increased in recent decades in people who inject heroin, which can contain spores of the bacteria. The source of infant botulism is often honey or corn syrup.

When you eat food containing the toxin, it disrupts nerve function, causing paralysis. When the germs get into a wound, they can multiply and produce toxin, too. Babies get infant botulism after consuming spores of the bacteria, which then grow in the digestive system and make toxins.

This effect makes botulinum toxin useful as a medication. Botox, which contains a tiny amount of botulinum toxin, harmlessly reduces facial wrinkles by preventing contraction of muscles beneath the skin. Other uses for Botox include treating eyelid spasms and, experimentally, migraine headaches.

Seek urgent medical care if you suspect that you may have botulism. Early treatment increases your chances of survival. Seeking medical care promptly may also help authorities keep other people from eating contaminated food.

To diagnose botulism, your doctor will investigate your signs and symptoms and check you for signs of muscle weakness or paralysis, such as drooping eyelids and weak voice. The doctor will also ask about the foods you've eaten in the past few days, and ask if you may have been exposed to the bacteria through a wound.

In cases of possible infant botulism, the doctor may ask if the child has eaten honey or corn syrup recently and has had problems such as constipation and sluggishness.

Because it affects muscle control throughout your body, botulism can cause many complications. The most immediate danger is that you won't be able to breathe, which is the most common cause of death in botulism. You may have shortness of breath after the poisoning, as well. Other complications include difficulty speaking and swallowing.

If you are diagnosed early with food-borne or wound botulism, an injected medication, antitoxin, can reduce your chances of complications. The antitoxin attaches itself to toxin that's still circulating in your bloodstream and keeps it from harming your nerves.

Antitoxin is not, however, recommended for cases of infant botulism, since it doesn't affect the disease-causing germs in the baby's digestive system. A treatment called botulism immune globulin has been investigated to treat infants; it appears effective in reducing the duration and severity of cases.

If you're having trouble breathing, you will probably need to use a ventilator. The ventilator pumps air to your lungs through a tube inserted in your airway through your nose or mouth. You may remain on the ventilator for some time — perhaps several weeks — as the effects of the toxin gradually lessen.

For cases of food-borne botulism, doctors sometimes clear out the digestive system by removing undigested food from the stomach and giving medications to induce bowel movements. If you have botulism in a wound, a doctor may need to remove infected tissue surgically. You may also require therapy to improve your speech, swallowing and other functions affected by the disease.

Be sure to use proper techniques when canning foods at home to ensure that any botulism germs in the food are destroyed. Sterilize these foods by pressure cooking them at 250 F for at least 30 minutes. Also consider boiling these foods for 10 minutes before serving them. For detailed information on safe canning, contact your county extension service, provided by the Department of Agriculture and many universities.

Avoid eating preserved food if its container is bulging or if the food smells spoiled. If you wrap potatoes in foil before baking them, eat them hot or store them in the refrigerator — not at room temperature.

To reduce the risk of infant botulism, avoid giving honey or corn syrup — even a tiny taste — to babies under the age of 1. To prevent wound botulism and other serious blood-borne diseases, never inject street drugs.