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Avoid all romaine lettuce, but do not worry about your turkey.
With two outbreaks of food poisoning making headlines before Thanksgiving, it can be difficult to get messages across that it's safe to eat. Here's what you need to know before sitting down for dinner.
WHAT IS THE STRUGGLE STRUGGLE?
On Tuesday, US health authorities issued an unusually wide warning against all types of romaine lettuce during an outbreak of E. Coli. They have asked restaurants and grocers to stop selling it, people to stop eating it and everyone to throw it away.
Thirty-two diseases in 11 states were linked to the Roman. Canada has also been affected, with 18 diseases in Ontario and Quebec. No deaths have been reported.
WAS IT NOT ALREADY A ROMAN EPIDEMIC THIS YEAR?
Yes. The strain of E. Coli in the current outbreak differs from that related to the Roman earlier this year that had sickened about 200 people and killed five. But it seems similar to the strain identified during a 2017 outbreak occurring at about the same time of year.
This outbreak was linked to "leafy vegetables", but no specific supplier or vegetable has ever been identified in the United States.
This time, officials were able to issue an early warning and specifically warn Romaine because of information gathered during interviews with sick people, said Laura Gieraltowski, of the Center for Disease Control and Prevention.
DOES VEGETABLES CAUSE MORE FOOD POISONING?
Improved detection can increase the number of outbreaks related to production. But the way food is produced is another consideration.
Timothy Lytton, a law professor at Georgia State University, said large livestock feedlots could be a contributing factor.
WHAT DOES COWS HAVE TO DO WITH E. COLI TO ENTER INTO LITTLE?
A large number of cows produce large quantities of animal waste. And bacteria from cattle excrement can migrate into the water used to irrigate the product fields, Lytton said.
In fact, contaminated irrigation water has been identified as a likely source of the previous outbreak of E. This year's coli tied to the Roman region of Yuma, Arizona.
WHAT DO WE DO?
After the Yuma outbreak, producers in California and Arizona expanded the buffer zone between animal parks and production fields from 400 feet to 1,200 feet. Teressa Lopez, director of the Arizona Leafy Green Marketing Agreement, also said that producers in this state had begun to treat the water flowing near animal parks. The treatment, which kills pathogens, is used for the water that will be used for the products.
Is there more regulation coming?
The Food and Drug Administration has new rules to enhance product safety, but implementation has staggered and started recently. The agency said the inspections would not start until next year.
Sarah Sorscher of the Center for Science in the Public Interest emphasized the importance of measures such as analysis of irrigation water. But a requirement for water testing has been challenged and postponed, given the limited availability of tests capable of specifically detecting harmful types of E. coli. Coli. In the end, this rule might not be enforced, said Sorscher.
Why can not I wash my Roman?
Washing does not kill germs, unlike the heat of cooking. This is why health officials warn against all romaine.
According to a 2013 US government report, leafy greens such as lettuce and spinach are the main source of food poisoning.
"Any product for which we do not have a cooking step is a bigger problem," said Martin Wiedmann, professor of food safety at Cornell.
SO WHEN CAN I RECEIVE SALAD?
We do not know when it will be good to eat romaine again. Public health officials would like to be able to identify the source of the contamination or see the reported diseases cease. The Romaine has a lifespan of 21 days.
The Romaine sold in the United States comes from different regions and at different times of the year. So, while romaine lettuce linked to the epidemic of E. Coli earlier this year came from Arizona, the romaine lettuce on the shelves comes mainly from California, regulators said.
Recently, the harvest began to return to Southern California and Arizona, although most of this product has not yet been shipped, according to Lopez, from the US. Arizona Leafy Green Marketing Agreement. She added that the suppliers had been asked to withdraw their products until the health authorities were convinced that the pipeline no longer contained contaminated Roman.
WHAT IS IT OF TURKEY?
In addition to the Roman epidemic, there is a long, widespread outbreak of salmonella linked to raw turkey in the United States.
Raw meat and poultry are allowed to have Salmonella because it is assumed that people will cook it. That's why regulators do not tell people to avoid it, they simply remind them to handle and cook their holiday birds properly.
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The Health and Science Department of the Associated Press receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute's Department of Scientific Education. The AP is solely responsible for all content.
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