Health IQ: Put down the cantaloupe

Cantaloupe recalls and salmonella scare

At least five people have died after a salmonella outbreak tied to Malichita and Rudy brand cantaloupes has spread across six provinces, prompting warnings from food safety experts to look for signs of the infection and consider temporarily avoiding melons.

In October and November, CFIA issued several recalls of fruit due to salmonella risks. The majority of these recalls involved various brands of cantaloupe, including pre-cut chunks and whole melons.

Since the recall, over a hundred cases of salmonella infection have emerged, particularly affecting children and older adults, according to a statement by the Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC) on Dec. 7.

What makes this bacteria so dangerous is its ability to invade the lining of the intestines, where it can then enter the bloodstream, causing extreme dehydration and even sepsis, warned Keith Warriner, a food safety professor from the University of Guelph.  The spread can lead to widespread infection and affect vital organs.

“Salmonella is one of the most prolific pathogens we know,” he said. “The reason why it’s so successful is that it can survive any environment, it can be passed from person to person and passed into foods.”

Read more about the outbreak, how to stay safe, and how the bacteria may have contaminated cantaloupes in the first place.

Loneliness spikes among Canadian seniors

In the face of Canada’s rapidly-aging population, experts are raising concerns about the growing impact of loneliness and social isolation.

A report by the National Institute of Ageing (NIA) released Dec. 5 found that around 41 per cent of Canadians aged 50 years and older are at risk of social isolation and up to 58 per cent in that age group have experienced loneliness.

And this can have both mental and physical consequences.

“Social isolation and loneliness are as bad for your health as smoking 15 cigarettes a day,” Jacques Lee, a Toronto-based emergency physician, told Global News.

Mood disorders, dementia, cardiovascular disease, malnutrition and premature mortality are just a few of the adverse health outcomes that both social isolation and loneliness have been linked to among older adults, the NIA report said.

And with older Canadians making up a rapidly growing proportion of the country’s population, the report predicts a spike in the number of isolated or lonely seniors.

The survey, which was conducted over the summer, comes on the heels of a recent warning from the World Health Organization (WHO), which said loneliness could soon become a global epidemic.

Read more about the NIA report and why Canadians aged 80 years appeared to fare better than their younger counterparts.

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Health Canada green lights another COVID-19 booster

— WHAT EXPERTS ARE SAYING —

Health Canada recently approved the updated Novavax vaccine, marking the third updated booster available to Canadians alongside those from Pfizer and Moderna.

On Dec. 5, the federal health regulator authorized Nuvaxovid XBB.1.5 for people ages 12 and older.

The updated vaccine stands apart from other COVID-19 shots, as it’s protein-based and does not use mRNA technology. These vaccines contain a modified version of the spike protein itself, unlike mRNA vaccines that have molecular manufacturing instructions for the body to make the spike protein.

Only one dose of the updated vaccine is needed for those Canadians who have already had their primary series, according to Health Canada. However, if you have previously not been vaccinated, you will need two doses of the primary series.

Reported COVID-19 cases continue to vary across the provinces and territories, according to Health Canada. However, the health agency said there have been gradual declines in weekly COVID-19 deaths since mid-October, with some fluctuations observed in recent weeks.

But in Ontario, COVID-19 wastewater surveillance shows the highest growth of reported cases in more than a year.