АНУ-д хүний ялгадас болон бохирдсон усаар дамжин халдварладаг циклоспориазис өвчний тохиолдол 12,000-д хүрч, эрүүл мэндийн салбарт анхаарал татаж байна.
Энэхүү шимэгч хорхой нь хүний гэдэсний замд нэвтэрч, суулгалт, бөөлжилт, биеийн булчин өвдөх зэрэг шинж тэмдгээр илэрдэг байна. Мэргэжилтнүүдийн тайлбарласнаар, халдвар нь ихэвчлэн хүний ялгадас агуулсан бохир усаар хүнсний ногоог услах, эсхүл халдвар авсан хүн хүнс боловсруулах явцад гараа дутуу угааснаас үүдэн тархдаг ажээ. Одоогоор эрх бүхий байгууллагууд халдварын эх үүсвэрийг тогтоохоор ажиллаж байна.
Циклоспора нь зөвхөн хүнээс хүнд дамждаг онцлогтой бөгөөд ногоон навчит ургамал, жимсгэнэ зэрэг түүхийгээр нь хэрэглэдэг бүтээгдэхүүнээр дамжин халдварлах эрсдэл өндөр байна. Хүнсний ногоог угаах нь халдварын эрсдэлийг бүрэн арилгахгүй тул 158 хэм хүртэл халуунд бүрэн болгож хэрэглэхийг АНУ-ын Хүнс, эмийн хяналтын газраас зөвлөв.
АНУ-ын хүнсний хангамжийн сүлжээ нь өргөн хүрээтэй тул нэгэнт бохирдсон бүтээгдэхүүнийг бүрэн хянах, цэвэрлэхэд хүндрэлтэй байгааг судлаачид онцолж байна. Одоогоор Их нууруудын бүс болон Баруун дунд мужуудад бүртгэгдсэн халдварын тохиолдлууд нь бохирдсон шанцайтай холбоотой байж болзошгүй гэсэн таамаг байгаа ч мөрдөн шалгах ажиллагаа үргэлжилж байна.
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The cyclospora cayetanensis parasite has caused a record 12,000 U.S. cases of the stomach bug cyclosporiasis this year, resulting in nasty symptoms including “explosive diarrhea,” vomiting and body aches.
People fall ill by eating produce or drinking water that is contaminated with the parasite, which lives in human waste.
That means an unsavory chain of events is likely behind the current outbreaks, although the source has not yet been identified by public health officials.
The parasite is often spread through traces of human waste that end up in water used on crops, Dr. David Relman, a professor of medicine at Stanford Medicine, explained earlier this month.
That’s the source of most major outbreaks – and potentially this one, other experts told The New York Times this week.
“You’d have to have a lot of produce being irrigated with a lot of water that was contaminated by a lot of cyclospora to see this number of cases,” Keith Schneider, a professor of food safety at the University of Florida, told the paper.
But that’s not the only way cyclospora can spread. When an individual handles contaminated crops – whether during growing, harvesting or processing – the parasite can attach to other crops that haven’t been sprayed with contaminated water.
And if a person infected with cyclosporiasis goes to the bathroom and doesn’t properly wash their hands, that’s another way for the parasite to travel.
“Food can become contaminated when an infected person with poor hand hygiene handles it,” UC Davis Health says.
Humans are the sole reason cyclospora spreads, according to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. People can only be infected if they swallow the parasite.
When cyclospora is swallowed, the parasite infects the small intestine, multiplying in the body’s cells for weeks before it is expelled in feces. After it leaves the body, the parasite needs a couple of weeks to become infectious again in the environment, the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment says.
“This time period outside of the body allows the parasite to become infective, which is where it contaminates food or water,” the department wrote.
That’s how the cycle continues.
Unfortunately, it doesn’t take much to become infected and everyone is at risk. Some foods have been more susceptible to cyclospora than others, too. Those include cilantro, raspberries, snow peas, basil and parsley.
“Because leafy greens and berries are usually consumed raw, the parasite can remain viable, even after washing,” Ynes Ortega, a food safety expert at the University of Georgia, pointed out.
Contaminated lettuce has been linked to cases in Great Lakes states and the Midwest, according to the FDA, but the investigation into cases remains ongoing.
While washing produce can help to reduce risk, it doesn’t eliminate the parasite. The only way to kill it is to cook food at 158 degrees Fahrenheit.
That’s part of the problem, too.
“Our fresh produce system is really a web, a network, going out to grocery stores, restaurants and schools. The produce industry and other stakeholders do the best they can to prevent these outbreaks,” Gerardo “Jerry” Lopez, an associate professor at the University of Arizona, said. “But once the parasite is on produce, it’s hard to get off.”
