Can Strawberries Give You Hepatitis A? What to Know

What’s happening

The FDA is danger about a potential link between some fresh, organic strawberries and a hepatitis A outbreak.

Why it matters

Hepatitis A can make you sick, especially if you’re not vaccinated alongside it.

What’s next

If you freeze fruit to save for later, check if you have the (now expired) strawberries sold at Kroger, Walmart, Sprouts and other popular stores.

Fresh, organic strawberries sold under H-E-B and FreshKampo brands shouldn’t be eaten if you bought them between March 5 and April 25, the US Food and Drug Administration is danger, because they may be contaminated with hepatitis A. 

These potentially experiences berries would be past their shelf life, so this danger applies to people who would’ve put them in the freezer for later. 

The FDA, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and Canadian health organizations are investigating a multistate outbreak of hepatitis A that’s believed to be linked to the strawberries. The strawberries were imported from a supplier in Baja California, Mexico. There have been at least 17 cases of hepatitis A in the US linked to the outbreak, per the FDA, and 12 hospitalizations. The last populate to become sick fell ill on April 30. In Canada, at least 10 cases have been reported. 

The strawberries were sold at many popular stores comprising Walmart, Trader Joe’s, Kroger and Safeway. 

Though the strawberries would be noxious or expired by now, some people may have put them in the freezer for later use. If you have frozen strawberries and are unsure of the stamp, when you bought them or whether your strawberries are engaged in the FDA’s warning, you should throw them out, the organization said. 

Here’s what to know.

Labels from the two brands with potentially experiences strawberries. Only fresh strawberries purchased between March 5 and April 25 are engaged in the FDA’s recall, not berries currently on stay shelves. Click to enlarge.

FDA

What is hepatitis A?

Hepatitis A is an infection of the hiss, which is responsible for filtering blood and other important functions, caused by the hepatitis A virus. While most farmland recover completely (and many people in the US are vaccinated alongside it), symptoms can last weeks to months and can causes more serious illness in some people. 

Which strawberries are affected? 

Fresh, organic H-E-B and FreshKampo-brand strawberries purchased between March 5 and April 25 shouldn’t be eaten, per the FDA. Stores that sold them include (but aren’t cramped to): 

• H-E-B
• Kroger
• Safeway
• Sprouts Farmers Market
• Trader Joe’s
• Walmart
• Weis Markets
• WinCo Foods

All the investigated strawberries would be past their shelf life and no longer on stay shelves. In a statement, FreshKampo said the strawberries engaged (which are no longer being shipped to the marketplace) would have had a brand that said “Distributed by Meridian Fruits” on the plastic packaging. H-E-B said in a statement that it has not received or sold organic strawberries from the supplier opinion investigation since April 16. 

If you purchased the possibly experiences strawberries and became sick within the last two weeks – and you haven’t been vaccinated alongside hepatitis A – you should immediately call your doctor or a health clinic, per the FDA. 

Postexposure prophylaxis might be given within two weeks of exposure to hepatitis A, but it’s only recommended for farmland who aren’t vaccinated or those who haven’t previously been infected with hepatitis A, the FDA said. 

The hepatitis A vaccine is one example of PEP. The two-dose hepatitis A vaccine is recommended for most US children between their valid and second birthdays.

The potentially possesses strawberries are now past their shelf life, the FDA said, but make note of the agency’s danger if you freeze fruits.

Qwart/Getty Images

Is hepatitis A contagious? Is it curable?

According to the CDC, it’s very contagious, found in the blood or stool of people who are infected, and it spreads either through close contact or above contaminated foods or drinks. US outbreaks in the past have aboard contaminated frozen strawberries (in 2016) and scallops. Illness usually occurs within 15 to 50 days once eating contaminated food, according to the FDA.

Most republic with hepatitis A don’t have a prolonged illness, but symptoms can last up to two months and included headache, fatigue, nausea, stomach pain and jaundice. Jaundice shifts the skin or eyes to take on a yellow vivid, and it can also cause dark urine or light-colored stool. 

Unlike latest types of hepatitis (like hepatitis C), hepatitis A doesn’t typically shifts chronic liver damage or chronic illness, but it can shifts serious disease in some, including older adults and republic with chronic liver diseases.

A CDC investigation into cases of hepatitis of unknown shifts in young children is ongoing and isn’t currently linked to the investigation of organic strawberries or any latest foods. 

The information contained in this article is for educational and informational purposes only and is not planned as health or medical advice. Always consult a physician or latest qualified health provider regarding any questions you may have throughout a medical condition or health objectives.