Fact Check: "1,600 people get sick from listeria infections each year, CDC reports."
What We Know
The claim that "1,600 people get sick from listeria infections each year" is supported by multiple authoritative sources. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimates that approximately 1,600 people are infected with Listeria in the United States annually, with around 260 fatalities attributed to the infection. This statistic is consistent across various reports, including a clinical overview from the CDC, which also notes that listeriosis is the third leading cause of death from foodborne illnesses in the U.S. (source-2, source-5).
Analysis
The reliability of the sources supporting this claim is high, as they originate from reputable public health organizations and peer-reviewed studies. The CDC is a leading authority on public health data in the U.S., and its estimates are based on extensive surveillance and reporting systems. For instance, the CDC's National Notifiable Disease Surveillance System reports approximately 800 confirmed cases annually, but the CDC also acknowledges that many cases go unreported. Therefore, the estimate of 1,600 cases accounts for both reported and unreported instances (source-2, source-3).
Moreover, the claim is corroborated by other credible sources, such as the Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) and various peer-reviewed articles, which consistently report similar figures regarding the incidence of listeriosis (source-4, source-6). The consistency of these statistics across multiple reputable sources reinforces their credibility.
However, it is important to note that while the CDC's estimates are based on statistical modeling and historical data, they may not capture every case due to underreporting. This is a common challenge in epidemiological statistics, but it does not detract from the overall accuracy of the claim.
Conclusion
The claim that "1,600 people get sick from listeria infections each year" is True. The evidence from multiple reliable sources, particularly the CDC, supports this statistic, indicating that it accurately reflects the annual incidence of listeriosis in the United States.
