{"id":17008,"date":"2026-07-15T14:43:06","date_gmt":"2026-07-15T18:43:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wwwcp.umes.edu\/sans\/?p=17008"},"modified":"2026-07-15T14:43:09","modified_gmt":"2026-07-15T18:43:09","slug":"cyclosporiasis-outbreak-tips-to-stay-safe","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wwwcp.umes.edu\/sans\/connections\/cyclosporiasis-outbreak-tips-to-stay-safe\/","title":{"rendered":"Cyclosporiasis outbreak: Tips to stay safe"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Cyclosporiasis, a parasitic intestinal illness, has been reported in the U.S. for decades. Improvements in testing have made it easier to detect the microorganism in produce samples. Cases tend to rise in the summer with clusters often following periods of heavy rainfall and water system disruptions, said Dr. Andrea Gilbert-Eckman, a food safety specialist with UMES Extension.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">As of July 13, 2026, there have been 1,645 cases of cyclosporiasis reported to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention from 34 states. There are no deaths reported, but 141 persons were hospitalized, Gilbert-Eckman said. Maryland has recorded 32 cases since January with 28 occurring since May 1.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Here\u2019s what the food safety specialist wants you to know:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Cyclosporiasis is caused by a microscopic parasite that may be found on fresh produce<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Investigators have not determined the source of the current outbreaks<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Symptoms (frequent diarrhea and fatigue) may appear one to two weeks after consuming contaminated food or water, person-to-person spread is unlikely<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>People suspected to be sick with cyclosporiasis should not handle fresh produce<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Preventing septic, portable toilet and gray water (from handwashing stations) leakage onto produce fields is important for reducing the risk of contamination<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Wash fruits and vegetables with potable water before preparing<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Wash hands before handling food or eating<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>The parasite can be killed by cooking food to temperatures higher than 158 \u00b0F (70 \u00b0C)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The life cycle of the parasite is much longer than many bacteria and viruses. It takes days to weeks to cause illness, making it difficult to identify the source of the outbreaks, Gilbert-Eckman said. Some people with infections may also be asymptomatic.<br><br>\u201cDespite these challenges, growers can take precautions to prevent contamination of produce before harvest. Provisions in Maryland GAP (Good Agricultural Practices) and the Produce Safety Rule provide guidance for reducing the risk to consumers,\u201d she said. \u201cTraining farm personnel on food safety practices is essential.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Since feces of infected people is the only known source of Cyclospora<em>, <\/em>it\u2019s important to ensure septic systems, portable toilets and handwashing stations do not impact fresh produce in the field by way of irrigation, washing or spraying. Adequate clean toilet and handwashing facilities should be available to personnel and visitors.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Cyclosporiasis, a parasitic intestinal illness, has been reported in the U.S. for decades. Improvements in testing have made it easier to detect the microorganism in produce samples. Cases tend to rise in the summer with clusters often following periods of heavy rainfall and water system disruptions, said Dr. Andrea Gilbert-Eckman, a food safety specialist with&#8230;<span class=\"cpschool-read-more-link-holder\"><a class=\"btn btn-basic cpschool-read-more-link\" href=\"https:\/\/wwwcp.umes.edu\/sans\/connections\/cyclosporiasis-outbreak-tips-to-stay-safe\/\">Read more <span class=\"sr-only\">Cyclosporiasis outbreak: Tips to stay safe<\/span><\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1168,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_coblocks_attr":"","_coblocks_dimensions":"","_coblocks_responsive_height":"","_coblocks_accordion_ie_support":"","wds_primary_category":45,"footnotes":""},"categories":[45,197],"tags":[],"post_folder":[],"class_list":["post-17008","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-connections","category-july-2026-connections"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/wwwcp.umes.edu\/sans\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17008","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/wwwcp.umes.edu\/sans\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/wwwcp.umes.edu\/sans\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wwwcp.umes.edu\/sans\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1168"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wwwcp.umes.edu\/sans\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=17008"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/wwwcp.umes.edu\/sans\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17008\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/wwwcp.umes.edu\/sans\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=17008"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wwwcp.umes.edu\/sans\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=17008"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wwwcp.umes.edu\/sans\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=17008"},{"taxonomy":"post_folder","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wwwcp.umes.edu\/sans\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/post_folder?post=17008"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}