With the Lunar New Year ushering in a host of feasting with family and friends, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) reminded people to practice good hand hygiene while the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued food safety tips.
Hospital visits for acute diarrhea usually increase during the Lunar New Year holiday, and recent disease surveillance data show a rising trend in the number of diarrhea cases, the CDC said.
There were 187,282 hospital visits for diarrhea in the week from Jan. 12 to Jan. 18, higher than the same weeks from 2020 to last year — which ranged from 102,371 to 158,399 visits, the centers said.
Photo: Lee Wen-te, Taipei Times
Similarly, there were 246 clusters of diarrhea cases reported in four recent weeks (from Dec. 22 to Jan. 18), also higher than the same period last year, which only had 53 clusters, it said.
Among 136 clusters that were tested for pathogens, 133 (97.8 percent) had norovirus infection, while the other two were found with pathogenic bacteria, it said.
The main symptoms of gastroenteritis (stomach flu) are watery diarrhea and vomiting, but sometimes it can also cause a fever, abdominal cramps, nausea and other symptoms, the CDC said, adding that usually the symptoms last for one to two days, but can take as long as 10 days.
The symptoms of stomach flu vary depending on the pathogen, the amount of contaminated food consumed, and the age and health condition of the patient, the centers said, adding that young children, elderly people and people with weakened immune systems are at a higher risk of being seriously ill.
The CDC urged people to frequently wash their hands with soap before meals and handling food, and after using the toilet, use serving utensils to transfer food to personal plates, and avoid eating raw or undercooked eggs, meat and seafood.
People with stomach flu symptoms should avoid handling food, and are advised to see a doctor or rest at home, while reducing direct contact with elderly people and young children, it added.
The centers also reminded people who have vomiting or diarrhea symptoms to stay at home to rest and wait at least 48 hours after symptoms are gone before returning to work or school.
Meanwhile, the FDA said that whether they are feasting at home or in a restaurant, people should follow food safety practices to avoid food poisoning.
People should dress open wounds and thoroughly wash their hands before handling food, pay attention to freshness and the expiration dates of food ingredients and avoid buying too much, separate raw and cooked foods to prevent cross-contamination, and cook food to a minimum internal temperature of 70°C to kill most harmful bacteria, it said.
Leftover food from home-cooked meals or from dining out should be refrigerated at 7°C or below, while high-risk foods should be kept at or below 5°C, the FDA said, adding that it should be reheated thoroughly before being consumed.
As many enjoy hiking during the holiday, the FDA reminded people not to drink mountain spring water directly, or eat unknown wild animals or plants.
An alleged US government plan to encourage Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC) to form a joint venture with Intel to boost US chipmaking would place the Taiwanese foundry giant in a more disadvantageous position than proposed tariffs on imported chips, a semiconductor expert said yesterday. If TSMC forms a joint venture with its US rival, it faces the risk of technology outflow, said Liu Pei-chen (劉佩真), a researcher at the Taiwan Industry Economics Database of the Taiwan Institute of Economic Research. A report by international financial services firm Baird said that Asia semiconductor supply chain talks suggest that the US government would
Starlux Airlines on Tuesday announced it is to launch new direct flights from Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport to Ontario, California, on June 2. The carrier said it plans to deploy the new-generation Airbus A350 on the Taipei-Ontario route. The Airbus A350 features a total of 306 seats, including four in first class, 26 in business class, 36 in premium economy and 240 in economy. According to Starlux’s initial schedule, four flights would run between Taoyuan and Ontario per week: Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday. Flights are to depart from Taoyuan at 8:05pm and arrive in California at 5:05pm (local time), while return flights
Nearly 800 Indian tourists are to arrive this week on an incentive tour organized by Indian company Asian Painted Ltd, making it the largest tour group from the South Asian nation to visit since the COVID-19 pandemic. The travelers are scheduled to arrive in six batches from Sunday to Feb. 25 for five-day tours, the Tourism Administration said yesterday. The tour would take the travelers, most of whom are visiting Taiwan for the first time, to several tourist sites in Taipei and Yilan County, including tea houses in Taipei’s Maokong (貓空), Dadaocheng (大稻埕) and Ximending (西門町) areas. They would also visit
HOSPITAL VISITS: Shin Kong Mitsukoshi pledged to give the families of the four people who died NT$11m each and provide support for staff working at the time The central government would assist local governments to enhance public safety, President William Lai (賴清德) said yesterday as he visited people in hospital who were injured in an explosion at a department store in Taichung on Thursday. A suspected gas explosion occurred on the 12th floor of the Shin Kong Mitsukoshi Zhonggang department store in Taichung at 11:33am on Thursday, killing four people and injuring 36. Of the 40 casualties, 39 were hospitalized, Ministry of Health and Welfare data showed. Three died after out-of-hospital cardiac arrests, the data showed. As of 6am yesterday, 25 of those injured had been discharged from hospital, leaving 11