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Can You Avoid the Watery, Explosive Diarrhea Parasite?

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16.07.2026

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Can You Avoid the Watery, Explosive Diarrhea Parasite?

There’s a parasitic outbreak loose in America, and it’s come for your fruits and veggies.

By Matt Jancer | Reviewed by Ysolt Usigan

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Now there’s a headline I thought I’d never write. But hey, we’re living in weird-ass times. Cyclosporiasis is a nasty little son of a bitch parasite that’s causing thousands of people to come down with explosive diarrhea. Like Oppenheimer-level. The stuff of which people will one day write folk songs.

Nobody is entirely sure where this latest outbreak started. Investigators are still trying to connect the dots between patients, produce suppliers, and specific foods, but one thing is clear: the U.S. is in the middle of a sizable Cyclospora outbreak, with thousands of confirmed and suspected cases reported across 34 states and Michigan taking the biggest hit. You could swear off salads until Labor Day, but that’s a miserable way to live. While no sink-side ritual can guarantee you’ll dodge Cyclospora, there are smarter ways to handle and prep fresh produce than giving it the world’s laziest rinse.

how the hell do you wash a salad?

Good Grips Salad Spinner (opens in a new window)

Scrubbing an apple underneath the faucet is easy, but when you’ve got a premixed salad in front of you, how the hell do you scrub........

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