NORFOLK, Va. — The death toll linked to listeria found in Boar’s Head deli meat products increased from three to nine this week, according to federal health officials. The products came from the company’s plant in Jarratt, Virginia.
Listeria, the bacteria that causes listeriosis, is typically found in the environment. “[It’s] usually found in the soil and water,” Kelsey Holloman, VDH foodborne disease epidemiology program manager, told 13News Now. “The disease develops when the bacteria gets into the blood or other body site.”
Listeria can survive refrigeration, so Holloman recommends people, especially those at high risk, heat foods to 165° to kill it.
“Refrigeration does not kill listeria,” Holloman explained. “But heating it up until it’s steaming hot before eating will kill any germs on these meats.”
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) also recommends cleaning your refrigerator and any surfaces that may have touched sliced deli meats.
At-risk patients include people who are pregnant, over 65 years of age, or have a compromised immune system.
While the illness is not usually passed from person to person, “Listeria can be transmitted from a pregnant person to their baby in the womb or during birth,” said Holloman. She added, “People who are pregnant, 65 or older, or have weakened immune system and experience these flu-like systems should seek medical care immediately.”
The symptoms of listeriosis include fever, muscle aches, nausea, and diarrhea. More severe symptoms include a stiff neck, headache, loss of balance, confusion, and convulsions.
“Listeriosis does not usually end fatally, but people in that high-risk group are a higher risk of becoming severely ill,” Holloman explained. “Other people with healthy immune systems can be infected with listeria, but they rarely become seriously ill.”
At last report by the CDC on Aug. 28, 57 people had been infected by listeria, all have been hospitalized, and nine people have died. This is the largest listeriosis outbreak since 2011, which was linked to cantaloupe.
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National food safety attorney Ron Simon is representing the family of Newport News man Gunter Garshon Morgenstein, whose family says he died after eating the meat, and several other victims of the outbreak.
Simon issued the following statement: “No one should die from eating a sandwich. Our hearts go out to the Morgensteins and all of the victims who have suffered from this outbreak. Through this lawsuit and others, we will determine exactly what went wrong at Boar’s Head, and what steps can be taken to ensure that this does not happen again.”
