Health News:
- Four more measles cases have been linked to an Atlanta daycare outbreak, all close contacts of an earlier case.... (Atlanta News)
- …and Pennsylvania added another 86 measles cases this week, bringing that outbreak to more than 500 cases. (CIDRAP)
- Cyclospora can cause gut problems like IBS, that last long after the infection itself is over. (NY Times)
- For years, doctors have routinely prescribed statins for older patients without much supporting data, and now there is finally a study that supports their use. (MedPage Today)
- Two of USDA’s three Cyclospora research projects lost funding, pretty rough timing after this summer’s massive outbreak. (US News)
- Four baby goats from a mobile petting zoo in North Carolina tested positive for rabies after an encounter with a skunk. (WBTV)
- Martina-brand mangoes sold at select Walmart stores in NY, NJ, CT and PA are being recalled for possible Salmonella. (USA Today)
- The Ebola outbreak in the DRC has grown to more than 6,000 cases and almost 3,000 deaths, and the fatality rate is still around 50%. (CIDRAP)
- General Mills has removed artificial dyes from all of its U.S. cereals, replacing them with colors from fruits, vegetables and spices. (AP News)
- Some good news…the list of potential benefits from GLP1s keeps growing. Small trials suggest they may also help protect against some infectious diseases, including TB. (MedPage Today)
Best Question:
We have hurricane preparedness plans, but are going to meet to walk through them this week as the season ramps up. Anything we should be sure to include?
It’s the height of hurricane season in Florida and the rest of the Gulf Coast, and we know that most of you have plans already. But the reality on the ground, especially as it relates to food safety, can get overlooked.
One of the simplest but most important things you can do is to ensure that your hurricane response plans and key contact info are accessible offline - we like to have managers in high-risk areas actually print it while they still have power, in case their phones die later. Make sure they know when to close and when they can partially open with limited operations. Preparing for power outages is key, including turning walk-ins to a low temp, and having accurate time and temperature logs for food safety. Reiterate to any restaurant managers that throwing away food that’s “on the edge” is cheaper than causing foodborne illness. After the hurricane, everything from flooding to water supply issues to pests may affect when to reopen safely. ZHH can help your disaster response and reopening plans in the event of an emergency, give us a shout if you need any support!
Sources: Steritech, Ready.gov, NRA
Best Read:
America’s tick problem is getting worse, with more ticks spreading to more places and bringing different diseases along with them. But most approaches still focus on avoiding tick bites rather than controlling ticks themselves. We appreciated this look at what a bigger plan to tackle ticks at their source could actually look like.
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