The number of Americans dying from food poisoning has increased by 50 percent in four years, according to a new report from the CDC.
In the US, the number of people hospitalized after eating unhealthy foods has increased by 20 percent. The number of potentially fatal cases has also increased by 20 percent.
The case comes amid growing concerns about tainted food being served by some airlines, including a Delta flight that had to make an emergency landing after staff realized passengers were being served contaminated food.
About a dozen passengers were examined by doctors for signs of food poisoning. It is still unclear how many people ate the food.
The bacteria that most commonly contaminates food is Campylobacteria. This bacteria can cause vomiting, diarrhea, fever, and in rare cases even life-threatening sepsis.
A Delta spokesperson told DailyMail.com that its teams are investigating the incident and have apologized to its customers.
Food poisoning from various bacteria can be fatal if patients become severely dehydrated, which can lead to kidney failure or nervous system damage, according to Cleveland Clinic.
The latest report shows that food poisoning causes 31,492 infections, 7,588 hospitalizations and 184 deaths in 2023 – up from 25,866 infections, 6,164 hospitalizations and 122 deaths in 2019.
About 85 percent of cases in 2023 occurred on U.S. soil, and 15 percent occurred because an American contracted the virus abroad.
According to the CDC, the total number of cases is likely higher because many cases of food poisoning go unreported and few patients seek medical attention for symptoms.
There are many different bacteria and parasites that can cause food poisoning.
You can get it from eating food contaminated with harmful bacteria, especially meat that is undercooked.
An example is Escherichia coli (E. Coli) infections, which can cause bloody diarrhea, stomach cramps, fever, and dehydration. In recent years, Americans have had this bacteria in their minced meat And salad.
It is found in many different types of meat, including beef, chicken, turkey, venison, and sheep.
A rare and particularly serious strain of this bacteria, called Shiga toxin-producing E. coli (STEC), can lead to kidney failure.
According to the report, the prevalence of this type has increased significantly over the past four years. Compared to 2019, the disease has increased by about 33 percent, from 2,514 cases to 3,351 cases.
Other common bacteria include salmonella, listeria and shigella. These bacteria can cause vomiting, diarrhea, fever and nausea and are often found in chicken, processed meats and beef, respectively.
The number of infections has remained stable since 2019, the report said.
Shigella infections are spreading around homeless camps in Oregon, California and Pennsylvania. Lack of access to toilets increases the likelihood that people will come into contact with human feces, spreading the bacteria.
Shigella is transmitted when a person comes into contact with feces through sex, diapers, food or water
E. coli (Escherichia coli) are bacteria that live in the intestines of healthy people and animals. But when people are exposed to the bacteria from other sources, such as other people’s feces, they can get food poisoning.
The federal government aims to reduce the incidence of many of these common infections by the end of the decade, as part of a broader public health campaign called The Healthy People 2030.
However, the new findings show that the federal government “has made too little progress in meeting goals for reducing foodborne illness,” the report said.
However, the report warned that the increase in cases may not be due to more people getting sick each year.
It could also be a sign that the government has become better at detecting cases, thanks to scientific advances in monitoring technology.
The new CDC report comes from the Foodborne Diseases Active Surveillance Network, which tests samples from people suspected of having food poisoning to determine which bacteria they have been infected with.
It covers 16 percent of the U.S. population, or approximately 53 million people, and includes ten different states, including Connecticut, Georgia, Maryland, Minnesota, New Mexico, Oregon and Tennessee, California, Colorado, and New York.
According to the CDC, the regions surveyed roughly match the demographics of the rest of the country.