Health Alerts

A steady annual increase in the number of UK travellers contracting the parasitic infection Cyclospora in Mexico has their public health authorities advising the need for suitable precautions. As stated by Travelhealthpro, the infections are usually ‘acquired from food or water contaminated by human faeces’. Typically, ‘foods involved are usually soft fruits like raspberries or salad products like coriander, basil and lettuce.’ Advice is to ‘maintain good food and water hygiene at all times when abroad even if staying in high-end, all-inclusive resorts’, ‘choose recently prepared, thoroughly cooked food that is served piping hot’ and ‘avoid fresh uncooked berries/unpeeled fruit and salads that have not been washed in safe water’. Cyclospora infections have also been recorded in travellers to the Dominican Republic and Indonesia, however, the risk exists in all tropical regions. Read more.