UPDATE 4.26.18: Romaine Lettuce Warnings Stronger After More Fall Ill

UPDATE 4.26.18: Romaine Lettuce Warnings Stronger After More Fall Ill

Update posted 4.26.18            

Romaine Lettuce Warnings Are Stronger After More Fall Ill - If you have romaine lettuce in your home, toss it in the trash.

The romaine lettuce E. coli outbreak is spreading. An update from the CDC says 31 more people from ten states have been affected by the outbreak since last week, bringing the total to 84. Forty-two people have been hospitalized, including one who developed kidney failure.

A total of 19 states have reported cases of E. coli from romaine lettuce, with Colorado, Georgia and South Dakota being added to the list. Pennsylvania and California have been the hardest hit by the outbreak.

The CDC says the infected lettuce is probably coming from the Yuma, Arizona growing region, and warns consumers not to eat the lettuce if you don't know where it was grown. The investigation into the exact source is ongoing.

According to the CDC:

  • Eighteen more ill people have been added to this investigation since the last update on April 13, 2018.
  • Five more states have reported ill people: Alaska, Arizona, California, Louisiana, and Montana.
  • Nine more hospitalizations have been reported, including two people who developed a type of kidney failure called hemolytic uremic syndrome.

CDC Warns Romaine Still At Risk For E.Coli              

You’ve probably heard that there’s an E. coli outbreak in the U.S. that’s been linked to romaine lettuce. The government thinks the lettuce is from the Yuma, Arizona area, but they’re not sure the specific grower, supplier, or distributor. So now, the CDC warns us not to eat any romaine lettuce unless we know where it comes from – and specifically, that we avoid any that’s grown in the Copper State.

The advisory includes whole heads and hearts of romaine, as well as chopped and bagged romaine and salad mixes that include romaine. Still, Consumer Reports is advising folks to avoid ALL romaine lettuce because “it’s unrealistic to expect consumers to figure out whether their romaine was produced in Arizona.” (But you can look on the packaging…just sayin)

The CDC says it can take around three to four days after coming into contact with E.coli before you start feeling symptoms. So far at least 64 people in 16 states have been infected with the same E. coli strain and 31 of them have been hospitalized. So for once, you’re healthier not eating the lettuce.

  • Information collected to date indicates that chopped romaine lettuce from the Yuma, Arizona growing region could be contaminated with E. coli O157:H7 and could make people sick.
  • Advice to Consumers:
    • Consumers anywhere in the United States who have store-bought chopped romaine lettuce at home, including salads and salad mixes containing chopped romaine lettuce, should not eat it and should throw it away, even if some of it was eaten and no one has gotten sick. If you do not know if the lettuce is romaine, do not eat it and throw it away.
    • Before purchasing romaine lettuce at a grocery store or eating it at a restaurant, confirm with the store or restaurant that it is not chopped romaine lettuce from the Yuma, Arizona growing region. If you cannot confirm the source of the romaine lettuce, do not buy it or eat it.
  • Advice to Restaurants and Retailers:
    • Restaurants and retailers should not serve or sell any chopped romaine lettuce, including salads and salad mixes containing chopped romaine lettuce, from the Yuma, Arizona growing region.
    • Restaurants and retailers should ask their suppliers about the source of their chopped romaine lettuce.

Where is this happening?

  • Alaska
  • Arizona
  • California
  • Connecticut
  • Idaho
  • Illinois
  • Louisiana
  • Michigan
  • Missouri
  • Montana
  • New Jersey
  • New York
  • Ohio
  • Pennsylvania
  • Virginia
  • Washington

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