January 1, Deli Meat and Cheese Linked to Deadly Listeria Outbreak in 6 States

ON THIS DAY IN HISTORY…
1918: WWI armistice, signed by the Allies and Germany, comes into effect. World War I hostilities end at 11 a.m., “the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month.”

Federal health officials say that some people should not eat any meats or cheeses from deli counters amid an ongoing listeria outbreak in the U.S. that has already killed one person, sickened more than a dozen others, and caused a pregnant woman to lose her child.

“You are at higher risk for severe listeria illness if you are pregnant, aged 65 or older, or have a weakened immune system due to to certain medical conditions or treatments,” the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said in an alert posted on the agency’s website.

“If you are in any of these groups, do not eat meat or cheese from any deli counter, unless it is reheated to an internal temperature of 165°F or until steaming hot.”

The CDC said that people who do not fall into the high-risk groups are unlikely to get severely sick from the pathogen — but they can still experience food poisoning symptoms, such as diarrhea and fever.

Most people recover without seeking medical treatment, but the agency cautioned that listeria can cause potentially-fatal illness in newborns, and put pregnant people at risk of miscarriage or premature birth.

So far, 16 people have gotten sick, including one who died, across six states: seven in New York; three in Maryland; two in Illinois; two in Massachusetts; one in California; and one in New Jersey.

“Deli meat and cheese purchased at deli counters in multiple states are the likely sources of this outbreak,” the CDC said. 

Research from the School of Public Health at the University of Minnesota shows that 90% of the annual listeria cases in the U.S. come from deli meat. The remaining 10% comes from deli cheeses, ready-to-eat salads, and frozen vegetables.

Sources: CDC | NPR