Foodborne Illnesses Leave 10% to 20% With Lasting Gut Problems as Cyclospora Cases Rise
Updated
Updated · The New York Times · Aug 31
Foodborne Illnesses Leave 10% to 20% With Lasting Gut Problems as Cyclospora Cases Rise
3 articles · Updated · The New York Times · Aug 31
Summary
Roughly 10% to 20% of people who get intestinal infections from bacteria, viruses or parasites develop post-infection IBS, with diarrhea and abdominal pain lasting months or even years.
Recent U.S. cyclospora infections, alongside outbreaks tied to jalapeños, sprouts and frozen blueberries, have gastroenterologists bracing for more patients whose symptoms persist after the initial illness clears.
Post-infection IBS is a subtype of irritable bowel syndrome that follows an acute gut infection and often skews toward diarrhea, leaving patients feeling they never fully recovered.
Two months after getting cyclospora, 55-year-old Michigan resident Ericka Ratliff still reports sharp abdominal pain and urgent bathroom trips, illustrating the longer tail of foodborne outbreaks.