Sponsored Content
IS YOUR LETTUCE SAFE TO EAT? IS ANY OF YOUR PRODUCE SAFE?
For decades, Americans have been reminded to “eat their greens” as part of a healthy diet, for many Americans “eating your greens” now comes with the bizarre concern, “is this safe?”
The reason for safety concerns over lettuce and many other produce items is simple – cyclospora, a parasite that has been spreading like wildfire across the country over the last few weeks.
Cyclospora is a parasite that spreads through raw produce and water that has been contaminated with human feces. The infection caused by the parasite, called cyclosporiasis, is responsible for what a variety of symptoms, including what is being referred to as “explosive diarrhea” in addition to cramps, fatigue, loss of appetite, low-grade fever and vomiting.
As the number of infections sky-rocketed, public health officials at the federal and local level were unable to determine the source of the outbreak.
In previous US outbreaks, cyclospora has been linked to fresh produce, including raspberries, basil, cilantro, green onions, snow peas, lettuce, mesclun and salad mixes. Research has also connected past outbreaks to blackberries, watercress, mangoes and even vegetable trays.
Michigan health officials, where the number of parasitic infections has been the highest, began suspecting that the culprit was lettuce produced in Mexico.
Then federal health officials seemingly confirmed the suspicions about Mexican lettuce as the source after notifying the public that lettuce produced in Mexico by Taylor Farms, which was distributed all over the US including to the Taco Bell food chain, had tested positive for cyclospora.
The relief over determining the source of the parasitic infections barely lasted 24 hours, before the FDA announced it was wrong.
The source of the Cyclospora illness outbreak remains unknown, after the Food and Drug Administration announced Sunday that a previous test identifying the parasite in a sample of lettuce from Taylor Farms de Mexico was not actually contaminated with Cyclospora.
The agency reviewed the results and said in a statement it "concluded that the finding does not represent true amplification and should be considered a false positive."
While the FDA said the test produced a false positive, they also said that they still believe that the lettuce may be responsible for the outbreak.
So is your lettuce safe? Is any of the produce in your home – particularly any that originated in Mexico – safe?
Amazingly enough, none of our public health officials can answer this question.
Many Americans are now asking what they can do to avoid this parasite:
Officials recommend following proper food safety practices when preparing meals.
Experts also say some foods appear to pose much less risk.
“To date, no commercially frozen produce, cooked foods or peeled fruit have been associated with cyclosporiasis infection,” one study cited by WPIX found.
The CDC advises washing hands thoroughly with soap and water after using the bathroom and before preparing food. Alcohol-based hand sanitizers do not kill cyclospora.
The Treatment
You can try to avoid every single food linked to cyclospora, you can follow all of the proper food safety practices, and you can still end up with the infection!
So what do you do to keep your family safe and healthy?
The good news is that while the cause of this outbreak is unknown, we do know what the treatment is – trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole - more commonly known as Bactrim.
Bactrim not only treats cyclospora infections but is the recommended treatment for a range of other GI and bacterial infections.
Don’t Wait Until You are Sick
We all know the time to stock up on medication – whether over the counter or prescription – is when you are healthy. Early intervention means early treatment and early treatment means a quicker path to recovery!
So how do you stock up on Bactrim?
That’s where The Wellness Company comes in!
This medical emergency kit contains an assortment of life-saving prescription medications – including Bactrim, as well as ivermectin, amoxicillin, Z-pak, and other medications. The Medical Emergency Kit includes a guidebook to aid in the safe use of these life-saving medications.
This kit is prescription-only – you can’t find it in any store or pharmacy. Simply fill out a short questionnaire after purchase and a trusted Wellness Company doctor will confirm your suitability and issue your prescription Medical Emergency Kit.
The Wellness Company Medical Emergency Kit includes:
- Amoxicillin-Clavulanate (generic Augmentin) 875/125 mg - 28 tablets
- Azithromycin (generic Z-Pak) 250 mg - 12 tablets
- Doxycycline Hyclate 100 mg - 60 capsules
- Metronidazole (generic Flagyl) 500 mg - 30 tablets
- Trimethoprim-Sulfamethoxazole (generic Bactrim) 800/160 mg - 28 tablets
- Ivermectin 12mg - 25 compounded capsules
- Fluconazole (generic Diflucan) 150 mg - 2 tablets
- Ondansetron (generic Zofran) 4mg - 6 tablets
- 1 Emergency Medication Guidebook written by the Chief Medical Board for safe use.
What people are saying about the Medical Emergency Kit:
Excellent Kit! This medical emergency kit is great. Having it “just in case” gives me peace of mind. Highly recommend. Thank you! – Melinda C.
Glad that I purchased your Medical Emergency Kit! Though I haven’t yet needed to use any of the medications that are in our kit, I am happy that I ordered it! One never knows when “an emergency might occur”, and I feel safer having your M.E.Kit at my disposal IF needed! We’re so glad we ordered ours! Thank you for making it available! – Susan M.
Peace of mind. It is an amazing peace of mind to have this kit in case of emergencies and shortages. The Wellness Company did an excellent job of getting this to me in a timely manner and I and thankful to have it. – Phyllis T.
Great medical emergency kit. Kit came as advertised! Neat and orderly. The guide is great. Only plan on using it in an emergency during a difficult time. Confident it is what I was counting on. – Fred D.
Order The Wellness Company’s Medical Emergency Kits before it's too late.