Here’s what to do with deli meats as the CDC investigates a listeria outbreak in the US

NEW YORK — As US health authorities investigate a fatal outbreak of listeria food poisoningthey are advising people who are pregnant, elderly or have compromised immune systems to avoid eating sliced ​​meat unless it is re-cooked at home to be piping hot.

O US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention did not require a food recall early Saturday because it remains unclear which specific products were contaminated with the bacteria now responsible for two deaths and 28 hospitalizations in 12 states. This means that contaminated food may still be in circulation and consumers should consider their personal risk level when consuming deli meats.

Federal health authorities notified on Friday that the number of illnesses is likely underestimated because people recovering at home are unlikely to be tested. For the same reason, the outbreak may have spread beyond states where listeria infections have been reported, particularly in the Midwest and along the US East Coast.

The highest known number of sick people — seven — occurred in New York, according to the CDC. The people who died were from Illinois and New Jersey.

Of the people investigators were able to interview, “89% reported eating sliced ​​meats from a deli, most commonly sliced ​​turkey, liver sausage and ham. The meats were sliced ​​in a variety of supermarket and grocery store delis,” the CDC said.

And samples collected from victims between May 29 and July 5 show that the bacteria are closely related genetically.

“This information suggests that deli-sliced ​​meats are a likely source of this outbreak. However, at this time the CDC does not have enough information to say which deli meats are causing this outbreak,” the agency said in a statement posted on its website on Friday.

Listeria infections often cause fever, muscle aches and tiredness and can cause a stiff neck, confusion, loss of balance and seizures. Symptoms can occur quickly or up to 10 weeks after eating contaminated food.

It can be diagnosed by testing body fluids, usually blood, and sometimes urine or spinal fluid, according to the Mayo Clinic.

Listeria infections are especially dangerous for people over age 65 and those with weakened immune systems, according to the CDC. The victims of this outbreak ranged in age from 32 to 94 years old, with an average age of 75 years old.

For pregnant women, listeria can increase the risk of miscarriage. One of the victims of the current outbreak was pregnant but did not suffer a miscarriage, authorities said.

Infections confined to the intestine — intestinal listeriosis — can often be treated without antibiotics, according to the CDC. For example, people may need extra fluids during diarrhea.

But when the infection spreads beyond the intestine — invasive listeriosis — it is extremely dangerous and is often treated with antibiotics to mitigate the risk of blood infections and brain inflammation, according to the Mayo Clinic.

So far there are no signs that people are getting sick from pre-packaged deli meats. And for at-risk people who already have deli slices in their fridge, they can be sanitized by cooking them again. “Refrigeration will not kill Listeria, but reheating before eating will kill any germs that may be present in these meats,” the CDC states.

This isn’t new advice: The CDC says it always recommends that people at higher risk for listeriosis avoid eating sliced ​​deli meats or heat them to an internal temperature of 165 Fahrenheit (74 Celsius) or until piping hot before eating. .

Of course, some of the products implicated in previous listeria outbreaks cannot be reheated: Over the decades, listeria has prompted voluntary or mandatory recalls of cheeses, bean sauces, milkmushrooms, packaged saladsIt is ice cream.

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