That hasn\u2019t stopped irreverent observers on social media from spinning up memes and commentary on the situation.<\/p>\n
Past cyclospora outbreaks have been caused by lettuce and other leafy greens, as well as other types of produce such as raspberries and snow peas. Infections typically spread from foods exposed to feces-contaminated irrigation water.<\/p>\n
In the current outbreak, no produce grower or supplier has been identified as the source of the contamination. Taco Bell said Tuesday that it had \u201cvoluntarily and temporarily\u201d removed certain ingredients at select restaurants \u201cas a precautionary measure.\u201d<\/p>\n
(Lettuce, cilantro, and other ingredients were still on sale at Boston-area Taco Bell <\/b>locations on Wednesday.)<\/p>\n
Nevertheless, the outbreak has salad eaters questioning their healthy dining habits \u2014 and non-salad-eaters affirming theirs.<\/p>\n
Even Merriam-Webster made greens the butt of the joke.<\/p>\n
Others on social media noted that the outbreak comes after the Trump administration\u2019s funding cuts to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention<\/a>, including a program tracking longer-term trends for cyclospora<\/a> and several other foodborne pathogens.<\/p>\n Health officials have said that program would not have materially impacted the response to the current outbreak<\/a>, which is handled by a real-time detection system at the state level.<\/p>\n Nevertheless, some posters couldn\u2019t help but draw parallels to a popular meme circulating after the 2024 presidential election \u2014 where, per the meme<\/a>, the \u201cEveryone Gets A Puppy\u201d platform just barely loses out to the \u201cDiarrhea Forever\u201d one.<\/p>\n Some, such as progressive commentator David Sirota, went further still in their prognoses.<\/p>\n In Massachusetts, the Department of Public Health recorded 18 cases of cyclosporiasis between May 1 and July 1. That\u2019s a relatively normal amount for Massachusetts at this time of year, where seasonal increases are common.<\/p>\n Health officials said the next update to the state\u2019s foodborne illness data would come on Aug. 1, \u201cbarring any unusual activity in reported cases in Massachusetts.\u201d<\/p>\n The Barnstable County Department of Health and Environment said in a statement<\/a> that Cape Cod residents should still be able to enjoy locally grown produce.<\/p>\n \u201cThis is a good moment to brush up on produce safety, not a reason to skip the farmers market,\u201d the department said. <\/p>\n With Massachusetts bathrooms mostly safe for the moment, some online commenters expressed their exasperation at the barrage of cyclospora concerns popping up online.<\/p>\n \u201cThis is going to become the new \u2018is this a tick? How bad are ticks at x place???\u2019\u201d wrote one commente<\/a>r on Reddit. \u201c[It will be] daily posting.\u201d<\/p>\n Material from the Associated Press was used in this report. <\/p>\n Camilo Fonseca can be reached at camilo.fonseca@globe.com<\/a>. Follow him on X @fonseca_esq<\/a> and on Instagram @camilo_fonseca.reports<\/a>.<\/p>\n