The CDC reports that a listeria epidemic that has spread to 12 states in the United States and claimed two lives is probably related to sliced deli meats.
According to the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention, as of Friday, 28 individuals had contracted the virus and were being treated in hospitals as a result of an epidemic that started in May.
States including Minnesota, Wisconsin, Illinois, Missouri, Georgia, North Carolina, Virginia, Maryland, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, New York, and Massachusetts have recorded cases of listeria infections.
The CDC states that the two fatalities were reported from Illinois and New Jersey. Additionally, the FDA said that one pregnant lady with listeria and continued to be pregnant even after she recovered.
Sick individuals informed state and municipal authorities that they had consumed “a variety of meats sliced at deli counters” in the month before their illness. The most popular foods that officials discovered were turkey, liverwurst and gammon. Of the 18 persons they examined, 16 admitted to eating meats that were cut at a deli. The CDC claims that a range of supermarket and grocery store delis supplied the sliced meats that were served at deli counters.
According to the CDC, foods consumed by those infected during this epidemic are being compared to foods consumed by those who had listeria but were not a part of the outbreak. The comparison reveals that those infected during this outbreak were “more likely to eat deli-sliced turkey and liverwurst.”
“This information suggests that meats sliced at the deli are a likely source of this outbreak,” the CDC stated. “However, at this time CDC doesn’t have enough information to say which deli meats are the source of this outbreak.”
According to the CDC, there is no evidence that packed deli meats cause listeria infections in humans.
The EPA emphasised that the real number of persons affected in this epidemic is likely larger than the reported number and that the outbreak might be happening in other states with no recorded infections.
This is because some individuals recover from listeria without receiving medical attention, and as a result, they are never tested for the disease, according to the CDC. They also said that since it takes three to four weeks to identify whether a person with listeria is a part of an outbreak, recent infections could not have been recorded.
According to the CDC, the Food Safety and Inspection Service of the U.S. Department of Agriculture is attempting to determine the source of the deli meats that were sliced at grocery store deli counters and bought by individuals who were ill during this epidemic.
The CDC advises people who are pregnant, 65 years of age or older, or who have a compromised immune system to get in touch with their doctor if they experience any symptoms of listeria, which can include fever, flu-like symptoms, headache, stiff neck, confusion, loss of balance, and seizures. They also advise against eating deli meats that have been sliced at a deli counter unless they have been heated before eating.
