11/1/06 Salmonella Outbreak & New Bird Flu

Salmonella outbreak & new bird flu. I'm Greg Martin with today's Northwest Report. A salmonella outbreak potentially linked to produce has sickened at least 172 people in 18 states. Health officials think the bacteria may have spread through some form of produce; the list of suspects includes lettuce and tomatoes. But the illnesses have not been tied to any specific product, chain, restaurants or supermarkets. No one has died in the outbreak, which stems from a common form of salmonella bacteria. Eleven people have been hospitalized. Lucy Caldwell with the Virginia Department of Health recommends caution. CALDWELL: We don't want to discourage people from eating healthy foods certainly, but just remember to take precautions and to wash them thoroughly. Scientists have discovered a new strain of bird flu that appears to sidestep current vaccines. It`s infecting people as well as poultry in Asia, and some researchers fear its evolution may have been steered by the vaccination programs designed to protect poultry from earlier types of the H5N1 flu. The new variant has become the primary version of the bird flu in several provinces of China and has spread to Hong Kong, Laos, Malaysia and Thailand, the researchers report. It is being called H5N1 Fujian-like, to distinguish it from earlier Hong Kong and Vietnam variants. Now with today's Food Forethought, here's Susan Allen. Are you an extreme commuter& come on; think about it& how far do you drive to work? Given the explosive growth of Boise, Seattle and Portland, the retreat to the exurbs has meant many of us now qualify as extreme commuters. Unlike a reality TV show with a incredible grand prize the only thing an extreme commuter can be assured of is stress, and lots of it . Yet more and more of us are willing to give up precious hours out of our lives to support a lifestyle. The Oregonian newspaper defined an extreme commuter as someone who drives 90 minutes or more to work each day. Where I live in Central Washington it isn't unusual to meet people who commute from Ellensburg or Wenatchee to Seattle while I know others who make drive from outskirts of Gresham or Salem each day to downtown Portland. In deference to the Oregonians definition I would take it one step further, given a short commute in Metro rush hour traffic can easily turn into 90 minutes from Hell. So are you an extreme commuter or is your commute extreme? Thanks Susan. That's today's Northwest Report. I'm Greg Martin on the Northwest Ag Information Network.