Health officials unclear on sources of foodborne illness
If you guessed either of these, you're wrong, but you're not alone. According to Centers for Disease Control, the four pathogens most commonly believed by health officials to cause food-borne illness in the U.S. ¿ Salmonella, E. coli, Staphyloccus and shigella ¿ account for less than 13 percent of total cases.
More surprising, a statewide survey of Tennessee public health officials showed that only 3 percent of those surveyed correctly identified the leading culprit, Norwalk-like Virus (NLV), which is estimated to cause 67 percent of all foodborne illness in the U.S.
The survey results, published in a recent issue of CDC's Emerging Infectious Diseases, suggests that public health officials have incorrect perceptions about foodborne disease and need to better educate themselves on the subject.
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