Sorenne’s first birthday was fun but her 1-year doctor’s visit was not. She got 5 shots and a blood draw which left her in tears and a bit leery of nurses for future visits. All I could think about was how thankful I am that she is not a sick child and that this kind of torture is preventative and not curative treatment. I do not know how parents of sick children cope with watching their children suffer. Doug said, “Now imagine watching your child in the hospital with HUS.”

One of Sorenne’s jabs was for Hepatitis A. I got that shot and follow up in 2003-2004 because I was visiting risky countries like Iraq and Senegal. Sorenne will be immunized as a baby and we should never have to worry about at least that illness in the future. Now if only there were a vaccine for dangerous strains of E. coli, Salmonella, and other foodborne illnesses.

Hepatitis A is one of the few causes of foodborne illness that only cycles through humans – and their poop.

So any outbreak of hepatitis A means human sewage came into contact with the food (which then wasn’t cooked) or someone shedding the virus had a poop, failed to adequately wash their hands, and then prepared an uncooked food.

Either could be happening in this on-going outbreak of hepatitis A in Australia that has sickened about 130 people and appears to be linked to semi-dry tomatoes.

Victorian health authorities revealed a further 23 cases of the infectious disease diagnosed in the past week.

Victoria's chief health officer Dr John Carnie said that so far this year there had been 200 notifications of hepatitis A, compared to 74 at the same time last year.

A study into the increase of cases indicates that more than two thirds of people that have become ill recalled eating semi-dried tomatoes, he said.

Local producers had promised the Department of Human Services they were doing their best to reduce the risk, while importers of the tomatoes had also been instructed to ensure appropriate quality control measures were in place, he said.

Bottled semi-dried tomatoes in supermarkets were pasteurised and considered safe along with any of the cooked product such as in pizzas or quiches.

The greatest risk would appear to be at restaurants and cafes, where semi-dried tomatoes are served in foods such as salads and sandwiches.

Don’t eat poop. Or at least cook it.
 

The Age, which is the primary newspaper in Melbourne, Australia, in the state of Victoria, reports that semi-dried tomatoes have been linked to several cases of hepatitis A.

Victoria's chief health officer John Carnie issued a warning on Friday evening (Friday morning here since they’re about 14 hours ahead) advising people to avoid eating semi-dried tomatoes unless they are thoroughly cooked.

"People who may have semi-dried tomatoes at home should not eat them unless they are thoroughly cooked, such as in pizza and quiche. Restaurants and cafes should also follow this advice.”

The Department of Health and Human Services has received 12 hepatitis A notifications this week and several people infected have reported eating semi-dried tomatoes.
 

While Brad and Angelina were treating their kiddies to some McDonald’s Happy Meals this weekend (see right), the Rock Island County Health department revealed repeat violations for the Milan, Illinois McDonald’s linked to a Hepatitis A outbreak, reports WQAD Online.

Rock Island County Health inspectors typically go to restaurants like a McDonalds once or twice a year. That's all that is required by law. But the Milan McDonald's because of violations last year was told in February they would be visited as many as four times this year.

The Milan McDonald's was shut down last Wednesday after the Rock Island County Health department realized an employee was working while sick with Hepatitis A and exposing customers to the disease. (Possibly 10,000 people were exposed.) When a violation occurs it's the inspectors job to find out why.

Paul Guse the Direcor of Environmental Health said there had been violations in the past, and a letter sent to the establishment in February, saying,

"We have identified your establishment as being below desired compliance levels and posing an increased risk for a foodborne illness outbreak."

Did the health department see this outbreak coming?

Guse says, "No."

Mcdonald's owner Kevin Murphy says he did not know of the outbreak until Monday the 13th and was not told the names of the infected employees until Wednesday, July 15th after his restaurant was closed.

Restaurant inspections aren’t predictive of foodborne illness outbreaks, but they can provide information on an establishment and management’s culture of food safety.