CDC Study: Leafy Greens Most Common Food Poisoning Source

Leafy greens like lettuce and spinach are the leading source of food poisoning according to a study from the Centers for Disease Control.

Leafy greens like lettuce and spinach are the leading source of food poisoning according to a study from the Centers for Disease Control & Prevention (CDC), reports ABC News. The reports, which covers the years 1998 to 2008, found that about 1 in 5 illnesses were linked to leafy green vegetables, more than any other type of food, and nearly half of all food poisonings were attributed to produce in general. Each year about 48 million Americans suffers food poisoning, resulting in some 128,000 hospitalization and 3,000 deaths, according to CDC estimates.

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Nathan Metz (not verified)
on Feb 4, 2013

Were they improperly grown or cross-contaminated in handling? Scaring people away from leafy greens is not a good idea without being more specific. I remember the spinach scare, which may have bumped that category way up, but statistics often lie!

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