Key points
- People can get sick eating food or drinking water that is contaminated with human poop containing the Cyclospora parasite.
- Follow safe food handling practices to reduce your risk of illness.
- Stay up to date on food safety alerts. Do not eat recalled food.
Overview
When people eat food or drink water that’s contaminated with Cyclospora, they can get a gastrointestinal illness called cyclosporiasis. Follow food and vegetable handling recommendations to reduce the risk of illness from fresh produce. Note: If you are traveling to tropical or subtropical areas where cyclosporiasis is regularly occurring, it's important to know that routine chemical disinfection or sanitization of food or water is unlikely to kill Cyclospora.
Prevention tips
People should stay up to date on food safety alerts, not eat recalled food, and follow food safety advice to help reduce their risk of getting sick from Cyclospora.
Wash
- Wash hands with soap and water before and after handling or preparing raw fruits and vegetables.
Prepare
- Wash all fruits and vegetables thoroughly under running water before eating, cutting, or cooking.
- It is important to thoroughly wash produce even if it is labeled as pre-washed.
- Scrub firm fruits and vegetables, such as melons and cucumbers, with a clean produce brush.
- Cut away any damaged or bruised areas on fruits and vegetables before preparing and eating.
- Cooking can kill the parasite. Since washing alone cannot guarantee the parasite's removal, you can cook produce to a temperature of at least 158 °F (70°C).
Store
- Refrigerate cut, peeled, or cooked fruits and vegetables as soon as possible (within two hours).
What CDC is doing
CDC monitors cyclosporiasis occurrences in the United States and helps state health departments identify and investigate outbreaks to prevent additional cases.
Resources
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration's (FDA) Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition (CFSAN) published detailed food safety recommendations for growers and suppliers. The guide describes good agricultural practices (GAPs) and good manufacturing practices (GMPs) for fresh fruits and vegetables.