Important CDC Norovirus Findings

I know that it’s getting harder and harder to just go out and enjoy yourself at a restaurant, but I thought these new finders were too important not to share (even if it pops that tiny remaining bubble of blissful ignorance). We want to protect ourselves as much as possible, especially against something as heinous as the norovirus (or stomach flu as we most often “fondly” refer to it). When heading to a restaurant be careful what you’re choosing and from where.

The CDC released a new report stating that at least 1 in 5 food service employees admits to having worked with the stomach flu/norovirus still in their system last year. This means they reported to work with the symptoms of either diarrhea or vomiting within the last day or so. The main issue with this finding is the norovirus itself: it’s not enough to simply wash your hands to stop it from spreading, it takes so few germs to get you sick that washing your hands isn't effective enough on its own.

The norovirus lends itself particularly well to raw, uncooked, and pre-prepared foods, such as fruits and vegetable. So when you're choosing to eat healthy by picking the salad bar over a burger you could be putting yourself at risk.

The rules and regulations that can be put in place to protect consumers are really simple: wear glove and use plasti/blog/c/disposable utensils when preparing food and always wait at least 48 hours after symptoms are gone before returning to work. Most reputable establishments already do/will do so/will continue to follow these simple regulations.