Despite high-profile food recalls in recent years, the federal government has substantially cut its estimates of how many people are sickened by food-borne illnesses. Unfortunately, authorities say, the dip does not mean that the U.S. food supply is getting safer, just that researchers are making more accurate estimates, The New York Times reports.
According to a pair of reports released Wednesday by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, every year 48 million Americans–1 in 6–get sick from the food they eat. Of those, 128,000 have to be hospitalized, while 3,000 die.
Previously, based on research from 1999, the CDC had estimated that 76 million got sick from tainted food annually, and that about 5,000 people died from foodborne illness every year.
“It would be really unfortunate if there were conclusions, looking at 76 million and 48 million, that foodborne disease is no longer a problem,” said Dr. Christopher R. Braden, the CDC director of foodborne, waterborne and environmental diseases. “The fact is that tens of millions of illnesses and hospitalizations and deaths of this extent tells us we need to do more.”
In both studies, officials extrapolated the number of nationwide illnesses from data on lab-confirmed illnesses in 10 states, and used data from telephone surveys.
Many of the deaths and hospitalizations, the government said, are due to salmonella, whose symptoms include diarrhea, fever and abdominal pain. While most people with salmonella recover without treatment, it can be fatal.
Earlier this year, salmonella led to a massive recall of millions of eggs
According to the new reports, salmonella is now estimated to cause more than one million illnesses and 378 deaths per year. Toxic forms of E. Coli that have been found in leafy greens and hamburger meat are estimated to cause more than 175,000 illnesses and 20 deaths annually.
The CDC said that it is conducting follow-up research to help regulators determine the greatest areas of risk in the food system.
The reports come as food safety experts and regulators are hoping the Senate will vote, before its current session ends, on stalled food safety legislation. Though the Senate approved the legislation in November, the bill was sidetracked by procedural issues that affected its final passage.
