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Two sisters in California fighting for their lives in ICU after eating SALAD contaminated with deadly paralyzing bacteria Got a health story? We want to hear from you: email us at [email protected] By Connor Boyd Health And Science Editor For Dailymail.Com Published: 09:36 EDT, 4 July 2024 | Updated: 10:00 EDT, 4 July 2024 e-mail 2 View comments Health chiefs investigating a bacterial outbreak at a party in California have traced the source back to a contaminated salad.
Two sisters who attended the family gathering in Fresno County last weekend are in intensive care on ventilators after eating cactus pads that contained C botulinum . These toxins get into food that has not been properly preserved. Once in the body, they attack nerves, causing muscles and organs like the lungs to become paralyzed.
Around ten others who attended the party were hospitalized with botulism symptoms including blurred vision and vertigo, but have since been discharged. Through interviews, officials learned all of them had attended the same family gathering and ate a homemade cactus salad. A bacterial infection outbreak has been traced the source back to a contaminated cactus salad (stock) Norma Sanchez, communicable disease specialist with Fresno County Department of Public Health, said they identified the contaminated cactus after sifting through trash cans.
Sanchez's team then tracked down the woman who prepared the salad — and learned the cactus pads, or nopales, had been prepared and stored.
