UN-AMERICAN. SO NOW WE’RE GOING TO TALK ABOUT SOMETHING THAT THAT ALL OF US CERTAINLY HAVE EXPERIENCED WITH DELI MEAT. IT’S NOW BEEN LINKED TO LISTERIA CASES IN 12 STATES, AND THAT INCLUDES MASSACHUSETTS, RIGHT? THAT’S RIGHT. THAT INCLUDES MASSACHUSETTS. AND IT’S SOMETHING THAT’S PART OF MANY PEOPLE’S DAILY LUNCH ROTATION. SO OBVIOUSLY HERE TO ANSWER YOUR QUESTIONS IS DOCTOR TODD ELLERIN OF SOUTH SHORE HEALTH DELI MEAT. WOW. REMIND US WHAT FIRST OF ALL, LET’S TALK ABOUT LISTERIA. WHAT SHOULD WE LOOK OUT FOR WITH LISTERIA. RIGHT. SO REMEMBER, FORTUNATELY, MOST OF THE FOOD THAT WE EAT IS SAFE. BUT WHEN WE HAVE CASES OF LISTERIA WHICH ARE VERY SERIOUS AS ABOUT 1600 CASES IN THE US, A YEAR AND ABOUT 260 DEATHS, THAT’S A HIGH MORTALITY RATE. I’VE SEEN, YOU KNOW, A FEW CASES THROUGHOUT MY CAREER, AND IT REALLY TAKES A MULTIDISCIPLINARY DISCIPLINARY TEAM TO TREAT THESE PATIENTS SERIOUSLY. SO IT’S NOT PLEASANT THEN. RIGHT. SO WHAT ARE THE SYMPTOMS? THE SYMPTOMS CAN LOOK LIKE THE FLU LIKE FEVERS, CHILLS, ACHES. SOMETIMES IT CAN LEAD TO MENINGITIS. THE MOST SERIOUS CASES HEADACHE, STIFF NECK CONFUSION, SEIZURES. AND IN PREGNANT WOMEN SOMETIMES IT CAN BE A MILD ILLNESS, BUT IT CAN CAUSE SOME REAL PROBLEMS WITH THE FETUS. SO I WANT TO BE HONEST WITH EVERYONE. THERE HAVEN’T BEEN A LOT OF SPECIFICS ON THIS ONE RIGHT NOW, OTHER THAN THE FACT THAT WE DON’T KNOW THAT IT’S OUT THERE. SO SO JUST THAT THE FACT THAT IT THAT IT IS SITTING OUT THERE THAT THAT IS THAT IS A CONCERN IN AND OF ITSELF, RIGHT? YOU KNOW, IT REALLY IS WHAT WE KNOW IS IT’S BEEN LINKED TO DELI MEATS. IT’S LOOKING LIKE, UM, TURKEY HAM. YEAH, LIVERWURST. BUT IT’S BEEN IN A NUMBER OF STUDIES, A DOZEN DIFFERENT STATES. SO BUT THE ONE THING WE DO KNOW IS WHEN YOU LOOK AT THE 28 PATIENTS THAT HAVE BEEN INFECTED AND TWO HAVE DIED, IT LOOKS LIKE IT’S THE SAME BACTERIA. WHEN YOU DO THAT DNA FINGERPRINT, WE GO TO THE DELI COUNTER. WE BUY THE MEAT ALL THE TIME. HOW DO WE KNOW THAT’S THAT’S NOT GOOD? YEAH, OKAY. THAT’S GOOD. HOW DO WE KNOW? RIGHT. THE IMPORTANT THING IS WE HAVE TO TAKE MATTERS INTO OUR OWN HANDS. SO WHAT THE CDC RECOMMENDS IS THAT PREGNANT WOMEN OVER 65 IMMUNOCOMPROMISED EITHER AVOID DELI MEAT OR IF YOU’RE GOING TO BUY IT FRESH, IT’S IMPORTANT TO MAKE SURE THAT YOU REHEAT IT TO AN INTERNAL TEMPERATURE OF ABOUT 165 DEGREES, OR UNTIL IT’S STEAMING, SO THAT’S IMPORTANT. HERE’S SOMETHING I DIDN’T KNOW THAT DELI MEAT IS PRETTY HIGH ON A LIST OF COMMON WAYS TO GET LISTERIA RIGHT. IT IS TRUE. AND THAT’S ONE OF THE REASONS WHY IT’S RECOMMENDED THAT PREGNANT WOMEN FOR EXAMPLE, AND IMMUNOCOMPROMISED PATIENTS, AVOID IT. THE OTHER THING IS, THOUGH, REMEMBER, HOW CAN WE AVOID LISTERIA? IT’S IMPORTANT TO WASH OUR HANDS, WASH THE COUNTERS BEFORE AND AFTER WITH SOAPY WATER. RIGHT? AVOID UNPASTEURIZED CHEESE. YOU MAY HAVE HEARD OF, YOU KNOW, WHEN YOUR WIFE WAS PREGNANT, YOU MAY HAVE HEARD THAT SHE WAS SUPPOSED TO AVOID UNPASTEURIZED. THOSE ARE SOME OF THE SOFTER CHEESES. IF YOU LOVE CHEESE, THE HARDER CHEESES ARE BETTER. THESE ARE THINGS WE HAVE TO KEEP IN THE BACK OF OUR MIND. WE’RE BUYING THE DELI MEATS NOW. IT’S TRUE. AND THIS IS AN ONGOING INVESTIGATION. WE STILL DON’T KNOW WHAT THE ROOT CAUSE IS. DOCTOR T