CDC is advising U.S. consumers to avoid romaine lettuce

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is advising U.S. consumers not to eat any romaine lettuce, and retailers and restaurants not serve or sell any, until they learn more about the current E.coli outbreak. This investigation is ongoing and the advice will be updated as more information is available.

Further, consumers who have any type of romaine lettuce in their home are advised not to eat it and throw it away instead, even if some of it was eaten and no one has gotten sick.

This advice includes all types or uses of romaine lettuce, such as whole heads of romaine, hearts of romaine, and bags and boxes of precut lettuce and salad mixes that contain romaine, including baby romaine, spring mix, and Caesar salad.

If consumers are unsure whether a lettuce is romaine or whether a salad mix contains romaine, they are advised not to eat it and throw it away.

Consumers are also advised to wash and sanitize drawers or shelves in refrigerators where romaine has been stored. Restaurants and retailers should not serve or sell any romaine lettuce, including salads and salad mixes containing romaine and should also follow washing and sanitizing procedures.

The alert further warns consumers that if they show symptoms of an E. coli infection to talk to their healthcare provider, write down what they’ve eaten in the week prior to getting sick, report their illness to their local health department and answer all questions from public health investigators about their illness.

Clinicians are being advised that antibiotics are not recommended for patients with E. coli O157 infections. Antibiotics are also not recommended for patients in whom E.coli O157 infection is suspected, until diagnostic testing rules out this infection.

Some studies have shown that administering antibiotics to patients with E. coli O157 infections might increase their risk of developing hemolytic uremic syndrome (a type of kidney failure), and the benefit of antibiotic treatment has not been clearly demonstrated.

Thus far 32 E.coli cases have been reported from 11 states across the country, with 13 cases requiring hospitalization.