Is It Safe to Eat Lettuce Yet?
Is It Safe to Eat Lettuce Yet?
现在吃生菜安全了吗？
For a while it seemed like the diarrhea-inducing parasite cyclospora was everywhere. Confirmed and suspected cases number more than 22,000 across 15 states, with 517 people requiring hospitalization. Two people in Michigan died. But now, with signs that the outbreak is slowing down, experts say lettuce is probably safe to eat again. The reason? Most of the contaminated produce is no longer available.
有一段时间，导致腹泻的寄生虫——圆孢子虫（cyclospora）似乎无处不在。在15个州，确诊和疑似病例超过22,000例，其中517人需要住院治疗，密歇根州有两人死亡。但现在，随着疫情放缓的迹象出现，专家表示生菜目前应该可以安全食用了。原因何在？因为大部分受污染的农产品已不再流通。
Federal health authorities have linked the outbreak to iceberg lettuce sourced from central Mexico and distributed by Taylor Farms, including at Taco Bell restaurants. On July 17, Taylor Farms announced a recall of shredded iceberg lettuce and salad mixes with “best if used by” dates through August 3, advising consumers to immediately discard any of the affected products. Grocery stores and restaurants are responsible for removing recalled items.
联邦卫生部门已将此次疫情与泰勒农场（Taylor Farms）分销的墨西哥中部生菜联系起来，其中包括塔可钟（Taco Bell）餐厅使用的生菜。7月17日，泰勒农场宣布召回“最佳食用日期”在8月3日之前的切碎生菜和混合沙拉，并建议消费者立即丢弃任何受影响的产品。杂货店和餐馆有责任下架这些被召回的商品。
“That product is off the market, so I think there’s absolutely lower risk for cyclospora in terms of eating lettuce,” says Kali Kniel, a professor of microbial food safety at the University of Delaware.
特拉华大学微生物食品安全教授卡莉·尼尔（Kali Kniel）表示：“该产品已退出市场，因此我认为食用生菜感染圆孢子虫的风险绝对降低了。”
But that doesn’t mean consumers shouldn’t still be vigilant about what they’re eating. As of August 6, there are two additional clusters of cyclosporiasis that officials are investigating. While a source has not been identified, officials in North Carolina say the state is looking into parsley and cilantro. At the same time, an outbreak of salmonella tied to jalapeños has infected at least 345 people across 27 states. On Sunday, Taylor Fresh Foods, the parent company of Taylor Farms, issued a recall of jalapeños and products containing jalapeños, including salsa and guacamole.
但这并不意味着消费者可以对饮食掉以轻心。截至8月6日，官员们正在调查另外两起圆孢子虫病聚集性病例。虽然尚未确定传染源，但北卡罗来纳州的官员表示，该州正在调查欧芹和香菜。与此同时，一起与墨西哥辣椒（jalapeños）有关的沙门氏菌疫情已导致27个州的至少345人感染。周日，泰勒农场的母公司泰勒新鲜食品公司（Taylor Fresh Foods）发布了对墨西哥辣椒及含有该成分产品（包括莎莎酱和鳄梨酱）的召回令。
Total cases of cyclosporiasis could continue ticking up for weeks because of the lag time between when a person is exposed and when symptoms emerge, as well as delays related to seeking care, getting tested, and linking cases to contaminated products. On average, people exposed to cyclospora start to feel sick seven days after exposure, but symptoms can take up to 14 days to appear. Given the seven-day average incubation period and the recall in mid-July, most exposures likely happened in June and the first half of July.
圆孢子虫病的病例总数可能会在未来几周内继续上升，这是因为从接触病原体到出现症状之间存在滞后期，以及在就医、检测和将病例与受污染产品关联方面存在延迟。平均而言，接触圆孢子虫的人在接触后七天开始感到不适，但症状可能需要长达14天才会显现。考虑到七天的平均潜伏期和7月中旬的召回行动，大多数感染很可能发生在6月和7月上半月。
Of course, there’s a chance that some people were exposed to the parasite after the recall occurred if they unintentionally ate a contaminated product they had at home. But now that those “best by” dates have passed, the original affected salad products should be long gone from refrigerators.
当然，如果人们无意中食用了家中存放的受污染产品，仍有可能在召回发生后接触到该寄生虫。但现在那些“最佳食用日期”已经过去，最初受影响的沙拉产品应该早已从冰箱中清理干净了。
In Michigan, which was hit hardest by the outbreak, the state has reported more than 12,000 cases since June. Typically, Michigan sees 40 to 50 cases of cyclosporiasis annually. However, new cases have been on a downward trajectory since late July. On August 6, the state’s health department said Michigan residents no longer need to avoid bagged salad mixes and may resume their usual food handling practices as new cyclosporiasis case reports and diarrhea-related emergency department visits are on the decline.
在受疫情影响最严重的密歇根州，自6月以来已报告了超过12,000例病例。通常情况下，密歇根州每年仅有40到50例圆孢子虫病。然而，自7月下旬以来，新病例呈下降趋势。8月6日，该州卫生部门表示，随着圆孢子虫病新病例报告和腹泻相关的急诊就诊人数减少，密歇根州居民不再需要避开袋装混合沙拉，可以恢复正常的食品处理习惯。
“As we are seeing fewer cases reported than previous weeks and fewer people reporting the onset of new symptoms, we have growing confidence that the outbreak is declining,” Laina Stebbins, a spokesperson for the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services, tells WIRED.
密歇根州卫生与公众服务部发言人莱娜·斯特宾斯（Laina Stebbins）告诉《连线》（WIRED）杂志：“随着我们看到的报告病例比前几周减少，且报告出现新症状的人数也在减少，我们越来越确信疫情正在消退。”
The state health department first identified lettuce and salad greens as a potential source of the outbreak on July 13 and advised consumers to purchase whole heads of lettuce rather than bagged products and to discard outer leaves and thoroughly wash inner leaves before eating. The cyclospora parasite clings to surfaces and crevices of raw produce and is resistant to common food sanitizers, making it tricky to get rid of.
该州卫生部门于7月13日首次确定生菜和沙拉菜叶是疫情的潜在来源，并建议消费者购买整颗生菜而非袋装产品，并在食用前丢弃外层叶片并彻底清洗内层叶片。圆孢子虫寄生在生鲜农产品的表面和缝隙中，且对常见的食品消毒剂具有抗性，因此很难彻底清除。
Joseph Eisenberg, a professor of epidemiology at the University of Michigan School of Public Health, says the outbreak is a good reminder of how complex food systems can increase the risk of foodborne illness.
密歇根大学公共卫生学院流行病学教授约瑟夫·艾森伯格（Joseph Eisenberg）表示，此次疫情是一个很好的提醒，说明复杂的食品系统如何增加了食源性疾病的风险。
“It’s not like a local farm can’t wind up with contamination and contaminated produce, but the supply chain is so much simpler that you’ll find it out quickly and deal with it,” he says. With bagged salad mixes, there can be several varieties of produce that all come from different farms or suppliers. That makes tracing the source of an outbreak more difficult. It’s also why buying whole lettuce is a safer bet.
他说：“并不是说当地农场就不会出现污染和受污染农产品，但其供应链要简单得多，你可以很快发现并处理它。”对于袋装混合沙拉，其中可能包含来自不同农场或供应商的多种农产品。这使得追踪疫情源头变得更加困难。这也是为什么购买整颗生菜更安全的原因。
Brian Schaneberg, executive director of the Institute for Food Safety and Health at the Illinois Institute of Technology, says drought and global warming also play a role in cyclospora risk.
伊利诺伊理工学院食品安全与健康研究所执行主任布莱恩·沙内伯格（Brian Schaneberg）表示，干旱和全球变暖也在圆孢子虫风险中扮演了角色。
“If you’re getting into drought season and the water supply is becoming an issue, then you’re having to get another source that has potential contamination points,” he says. Contaminated irrigation water is thought to be the most likely vehicle for spreading cyclospora to fresh produce.
他说：“如果你进入干旱季节，供水成为问题，那么你就不得不寻找其他水源，而这些水源可能存在污染点。”受污染的灌溉水被认为是将圆孢子虫传播到新鲜农产品的最主要途径。
And while the risk of cyclospora may be dwindling, it’s still summer, and that means foodborne illness in general is at its peak. Pathogens thrive in warm temperatures, and outdoor events where food is being served provide the perfect breeding ground for harmful microbes. “There’s always risk with fresh produce,” Schaneberg says. “This is the time that pathogens like to proliferate.”
虽然圆孢子虫的风险可能正在减小，但现在仍是夏季，这意味着食源性疾病总体上处于高峰期。病原体在温暖的环境中生长旺盛，而供应食物的户外活动为有害微生物提供了完美的滋生地。沙内伯格说：“新鲜农产品总是存在风险。现在正是病原体喜欢大量繁殖的时候。”