Deadly Outbreak Of E. Coli In U.S. May Be Linked To Romaine Lettuce

California is among 13 states (and Canada) to get with a deadly outbreak of E. Coli…..

By austind03 on January 4, 2018
FUKUSHIMA, JAPAN - NOVEMBER 30: A romaine lettuce harvested from Panasonic Corp.'s plant factory is seen on November 30, 2016 in Fukushima, Japan. One of Japan's largest electronics companies, Panasonic opened the factory to the media today. The factory helps to achieve stable production of vegetables by industrialising agriculture with its environmental control technologies and knowledge on factory management, according to the company.
(Photo by Tomohiro Ohsumi/Getty Images)

There’s a been an outbreak of E. coli in the U.S., and romaine lettuce appears to be the culprit…

According to Consumer Reports, 58 people in 13 states (as well as Canada) are sick with a strain of E. coli.

Health officials in Canada believe romaine lettuce to be the source of their outbreak, and they are advising citizens to avoid it for now. While U.S. health authorities are still investigating the cause, Consumer Reports is advising those in the U.S. to skip the produce as well.

James Rogers, Director of Food Safety and Research at Consumer Reports, said in a statement:

“Even though we can’t say with 100 percent certainty that romaine lettuce is the cause of the E. coli outbreak in the U.S., a greater degree of caution is appropriate given that lettuce is almost always consumed raw.”

As young children, the elderly, and people with weak immune systems are especially vulnerable, Rogers went on to say:

“People in these groups should be particularly vigilant about avoiding romaine lettuce.”

Sadly, this strain of E. coli is particularly dangerous; it produces a to a toxin that can cause kidney failure, severe illness, and even death. In the U.S., five people are now in the hospital and one has died. One person has also passed away in Canada.

Affected states include California, New York, Ohio, Washington, Michigan, New Hampshire, and Vermont. Currently, there are no recalls in effect.

Are you going to avoid romaine lettuce now? Let us know in the comments.

To learn more, and to get the full list of states, head right here.

Also, you can head right here to learn about the OshKosh B’gosh jacket recall.

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