It was in 2008 that the Journal of Clinical Microbiology first reported on a truly tragic case – that of a young man who had died just hours after eating his dinner.

Now, a little over 10 years later, the unfortunate events surrounding that death have been thrust back into the spotlight as “Dr. Bernard” takes a closer look on his YouTube channel.

The resulting video has thus far garnered millions of views, with several media outlets trying to spread the information so that the same thing can be avoided in the future …

It all began back in 2008, when a 20-year-old student from Belgium returned home from college and re-heated a bowl of spaghetti and tomato sauce in the microwave. At that time the food had been sitting in the sink for five days at room temperature.

After eating the pasta, the man, dubbed “AJ” in the 2008 report, went out to play sport.

Less than an hour later, however, AJ rushed home, as per the research report.

He was experiencing intense nausea, cramps and headaches, as well as vomiting and diarrhoea. Despite this, he didn’t receive any medication and drank only water.

Like so many others, AJ believed he could sleep the effects off. He went to bed around midnight … but never woke up.

When “AJ” didn’t get up the next morning, his parents grew concerned. They entered his room and found their son dead.

The report states the cause of death was food poisoning caused by bacillus cereus – a bacteria that produces toxins leading to vomiting and diarrhoea.

Liver damage

A later autopsy and examination of the food showed that the bacteria was so poisonous it caused AJ’s liver to collapse, according to British newspaper Metro.

Dr. Bernard issued the following warning when it comes to being mindful of leftover food.

“Many people eat pasta, or any other form of noodles, that are leftover for a day or two and they’re fine,” he said.

“But be careful of food left out for more than a few hours. If the food smells funny, it’s always better to be safe than sorry.”