Family members in three states fall ill with a parasitic disease after eating BEAR meat

People in several states have contracted a parasitic disease that made them violently ill after all of them ate bear meat.

Nine family members gathered in South Dakota and shared a meal of black bear meat and grilled vegetables.

A week later, six of them in Arizona, Minnesota and South Dakota suffered from muscle pain, vomiting and fever and were suspected of having trichinellosis.

Trichinellosis, also called trichonisus, is a parasitic disease that people get from eating raw or undercooked meat that is contaminated with a microscopic parasite worm called trichinella.

Around July 2022, the family members ate the bear meat, which was originally served rare because the dark color of the meat made it difficult for them to determine the degree of doneness.

After some of the group started eating the meat and noticed it was undercooked, the meat was cooked further before being served again.

The bear meat had been harvested in May 2022 by a relative in northern Saskatchewan, Canada.

A week after the reunion, a 29-year-old family member began feeling ill with fever, severe muscle aches and swollen eyes.

He sought medical attention for his symptoms four times and was hospitalized twice within 17 days.

The bear meat was originally served rare because the dark color of the meat made it difficult for the family to determine the degree of doneness

During his second hospital stay, he told doctors he had eaten bear meat and was treated with albendazole, an FDA-approved drug for parasitic worm infections.

The other confirmed case was a 12-year-old girl who suffered from the same symptoms.

Four other probable cases were found in two women aged 29 and 54, and two men aged 57 and 62.

The women had eaten only the vegetables, although they had been cooked and served with the bear meat.

All patients recovered. Tests on the remaining meat showed it contained trichinella larvae.

The CDC warned that adequate cooking is the only reliable way to kill trichinella parasites.

Despite bear meat being a less common meat to eat for most, a number of adventurous eaters on TikTok have shown off preparing the meat, although many warn of the risk of it not being cooked properly.

Although it is legal to own and eat bear meat in America, it is illegal to sell it. In some states it is also illegal to hunt bears.

Trichinellosis is a parasitic infection usually caused by eating undercooked or raw meat, usually pork.

Mild cases may get better on their own, but severe cases can lead to death without treatment.

The infection can be treated with antiparasitic medications.