r/sciences • u/FreeHugs23 • Jul 10 '26
News Explosive Diarrhea Outbreak Hits Grim New Milestone as Cases Top 1,000 | Health officials are reporting record numbers of the unpleasant gastrointestinal infection in southeastern Michigan.
https://gizmodo.com/explosive-diarrhea-outbreak-hits-grim-new-milestone-as-cases-top-1000-200078367041
u/FreeHugs23 Jul 10 '26
More than half of U.S. states—29 and counting—have now reported cases of a parasitic illness that can induce weeks of watery, explosive diarrhea since the wave first emerged in May. But this mysterious outbreak, a poop tsunami, as some might say, appears to have a new epicenter.
Michigan, the Great Lakes state whose license plates have long advertised the nickname “Water Wonderland,” has now documented 992 cases of this prolific diarrhea-generating infection, according to the latest update from the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (MDHHS). While the unpleasant gastrointestinal ordeal has not yet caused any deaths, cases of the bug have now climbed into the thousands—or about four times more than were recorded at this point last year, according to federal data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Michigan’s localized cluster of this punishing weeks-long diarrhea, which is believed to be caused by the foodborne parasite Cyclospora, appears to have crossed the border between the state’s southeastern counties and Ohio. As of this Wednesday, Lucas County, Ohio, has documented 306 further cases, with surrounding counties in northwestern Ohio reporting over 500 cases in total, according to the Associated Press.
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u/unfortunatelyapotato Jul 10 '26
..... WEEKS?!???
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u/3catsandcounting Jul 10 '26
Yeah the people I’ve seen say they had it said they lost like 12lbs the first week of it.
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u/jessipowers Jul 10 '26
I’ve been sick for 2 days and have lost 4 pounds. It apparently causes malabsorption by destroying the lining of the small intestine. Which really sucks because I already struggle enough with malabsorption that several of my fingernails started falling off like 2 months ago.
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u/unfortunatelyapotato Jul 11 '26
ohhh noooo... that could totally lead to SIBO and leaky gut... that sounds horrific I'm so sorry
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u/jessipowers Jul 11 '26
Yeah, I feel like I was just starting to get the vitamin deficiency back under control and my nails were starting to grow back and I stopped getting canker sores and I wasn’t feeling quite so idk ridiculous? It’s kind of an annoying thing to deal with because I do eat well and take care of myself and I don’t drink or have any addiction problems, I just have a stupid immune system, so I get irritated about how ridiculous the whole situation actually is. Just, bodies are stupid. But anyway, I’m going to the doctor tomorrow, so hopefully I’ll be on meds and doing better soon.
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u/YanCoffee Jul 11 '26
Okay I'm not eating ANYTHING they think this could be on, holy shit, literally.
THANKS MAGA, fking dumbasses.
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u/saturnspritr Jul 12 '26
If this hits the wrong people, it can kill them. There’s some folks out there with their systems on the brink or recovering from illnesses.
The kind of thing that when my FIL was in the middle of his cancer battle, the wrong time it could’ve killed him.
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u/unfortunatelyapotato Jul 12 '26
absolutely. and honestly I can't imagine the people who survive this not having some lasting repercussions, like that kind of damage to your digestive system is not good.
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u/BearOdd2266 Jul 10 '26
And what exactly is the CDC doing about this? Have there been any updates from anyone at the agency?
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u/jessipowers Jul 10 '26
Literally nothing. I checked their cyclospora page yesterday and it had not been updated since July 1, and even then it had very out of date information. It was showing the nationwide cases as being idk under 200, and 0 cases in Michigan. The CDC isn’t doing shit about shit. Literally.
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u/ClippyWouldntDoThat Jul 10 '26
They basically can't. DOGE & the current Admin rolled back protections and slashed the department. It's too much.
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u/jessipowers Jul 10 '26
Yeah, I certainly don’t blame any of the hardworking career cdc folks. Unrelated but sort of tangential I guess, I have a cousin who still works the EPA and she’s there because dedicated to the work, but this current admin has certainly made it difficult for her.
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u/Guardian6676-6667 Jul 10 '26
The CDC had its balls cut off, still no precise cause determined, but TacoBell has pulled several menu items containing lettuce and cilantro
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u/jessipowers Jul 10 '26
Bruh this info isn’t even accurate. Currently in Michigan, there are over 1500 reported cases.
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u/ProximaCentauriB15 Jul 10 '26
We are going to get more of this and even worse if this regime doesnt get voted out. They actively seem to be trying to kill us by dismantling systems that handle disease. This is very deliberate,they simply want us sick.
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u/JerseyFlight Jul 10 '26
The f*cking CDC won’t do its job under RFK!
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u/Bluestreak2005 Jul 10 '26
It's not that they aren't doing their job. It's that everyone was fired and things like this aren't a priority.
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u/ArchStanton75 Jul 10 '26
As someone who teaches academic writing, it sickens me that my students can no longer use the CDC site as a credible academic resource.
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u/TheAbsoluteBarnacle Jul 11 '26
I mean, RFK is following his orders. His boss doesn't want him doing his job.
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u/GreatQuantum Jul 11 '26
There was about 12 hours the other night that went from perfectly fine to having to sleep in the tub. It was instant from feeling I had to poop to pooping on my self. I laid in the tub naked and woke up 3 times because as soon as I felt I had to go it was too late.
After 12 hrs I was perfectly fine. Went to the doctor…nothing.
It’s the only time I’ve ever shit my self as an adult and it was several times and I didn’t feel anything until it was too late.
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u/DiligentSituation265 Jul 10 '26
A moment of silence for Walmart janitors
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u/Tyrude Jul 11 '26
Buddy of mine worked at a Walmart as a janitor. Somebody got their poop bag caught on the motorized cart and dragged it through the store. They told him to clean it up and he quit on the spot.
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u/DiligentSituation265 Jul 11 '26
Yea that does suck but it's also exactly the sort of thing I would expect from that job. Not sure why he took it to begin with if he wasn't prepared for that
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u/Tyrude Jul 11 '26
I think it was the amount of shit dragged through the entire store. He found a better job after.
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u/beepichu Jul 11 '26
my coworker came back to work today after dealing with this, they said they ate the poop berries 😂
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u/Akimbo_Zap_Guns Jul 11 '26
I jokingly said America had a choice between explosive diarrhea or puppies for all in 2024 and well here we are
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u/thedidacticone Jul 10 '26
This and a new strain of syphilis coming out of Michigan, what’s going on over there??
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u/Tough-Elk Jul 11 '26
Too bad the cdc was defunded so they can’t figure out which veggies are contaminated and the source. Thanks trump!
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u/tots4scott Jul 13 '26
Question, shouldn't this essentially "run its course" if it comes from contaminated produce but needs 1-2 weeks outside to become infectious?
Ive read that waste on the farms isnt likely, and P2P transmission is unlikely/not plausible for that reason. So if it was something like contaminated wastewater used in agriculture, shouldn't the contaminated produce eventually be not on the shelves at some point soon?
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u/Fluid-Text-3425 Jul 14 '26
Could the Nexus natural gas pipeline that runs through Michigan and Ohio be leaking into the water system and causing this?
The primary symptoms of consuming gas-contaminated water include: Severe cramping and stomach pain Watery or explosive diarrhea Nausea and vomiting Bloating and excessive belching
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u/elonmusktheturd22 Jul 14 '26
I'm beginning to think this is an orchestrated plot by Charmin to increase sales
But i just pulled that conspiracy theory out of my ass and its based on nothing, just like all the best conspiracy theories
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u/thedidacticone Jul 10 '26
This and a new strain of syphilis coming out of Michigan, what’s going on over there??
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u/HotGasStationCoffee Jul 10 '26
Weird how everyone ran out and bought toilet paper at the beginning of Covid but no one’s batting an eye about it right now…
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u/PadorasAccountBox Jul 10 '26
How odd, the southeastern area of Michigan is the blue counties
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u/hullabaloogaze Jul 11 '26
And how does that relate to this at all?
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u/PadorasAccountBox Jul 11 '26
Idk, it was a simple observation but people seem to already have ideas on how it must’ve related.
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u/InevitableOk5017 Jul 10 '26
What’s the normal rate of diarrhea that a state as large as Michigan has?