CHARLOTTE — In the last week, hundreds more cases of cyclosporiasis have been reported in North Carolina.
The Department of Health and Human Services shared an update on Tuesday amid the national outbreak of cases linked to an intestinal parasite.
Leaders say they’ve sent samples to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and they can confirm there is an outbreak of cyclosporiasis in North Carolina, but it’s not linked to the outbreak in other states.
According to NCDHHS, there have been 561 total cases in the state since May 1. The state saw 254 new cases since the last update on July 14.
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The state says three more people have been hospitalized due to the cyclospora parasite. That brings the total hospitalizations to 16 since May 1.
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Symptoms of cyclosporiasis include frequent, watery diarrhea; along with loss of appetite, weight loss, stomach cramps and pain, bloating, nausea, and fatigue. Some people may also experience vomiting, body aches, headaches, and fever.
The state health department says washing produce can help prevent cyclosporiasis, but they say it’s also an issue of standard food safety.
“We tell people to cook their chicken to prevent illness, cook their hamburgers, cook your pork. That doesn’t work as well with fresh fruits and vegetables because there’s typically no kill step before you eat the food,” said Carl Williams with NCDHHS.
Health officials believe the cyclospora is spread through exposure to human feces, but they don’t know which products are causing the outbreak in North Carolina.
“Our thought is that it’s likely – maybe probable – that there are multiple vehicles for cyclospora. It’s not a single source or single food product from a single food company," Williams said.
They also confirmed that they’re not currently testing the lettuce sold in North Carolina, but they didn’t say why.
“At this time we are not conducting any testing of lettuce products related to the cylcosporiasis outbreak,” said Anita McMullen with the North Carolina Department of Agriculture.
NC health officials say you can cook fruits and vegetables to at least 160 degrees to kill cyclospora. You’re also urged to avoid any food on the FDA’s recall website.