Food Poisoning Increase Centered on Restaurants, Daycare Centers, and Kindergartens... Norovirus Identified as Cause

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Recently, reports of suspected food poisoning have surged, particularly in restaurants, daycare centers, and kindergartens.

According to the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety on the 22nd, the number of suspected food poisoning reports in the first quarter of this year reached 146 cases, with 1,605 suspected patients. This is more than double the average number of suspected reports (71 cases) in the first quarter over the past five years from 2018 to 2022. In restaurants, 63 cases were reported in the first quarter of this year, which is 36 more than the average of 27 cases in the first quarter over the previous five years. Facilities for infants and young children, such as kindergartens and daycare centers, saw an increase from an average of 19 cases in the first quarter over the past five years to 49 cases in the first quarter of this year.

Among the 107 cases where the causative pathogen of food poisoning was identified, norovirus accounted for 79% (85 cases). Norovirus is an enteric virus that causes food poisoning when contaminated water or food is ingested. Infection can also occur through person-to-person contact via patients' feces, vomit, saliva, or contaminated hands. In infant and young child facilities such as daycare centers, there were many cases where infection spread not only through food contaminated with norovirus but also through vomiting or diarrhea of children exhibiting enteritis symptoms. The Ministry of Food and Drug Safety estimates that the increase in food poisoning cases centered around these facilities is due to increased activities following the lifting of social distancing measures, rising temperatures, and changes in the prevalent norovirus strains. To prepare countermeasures against the rapidly increasing food poisoning cases, the Ministry held an emergency video conference yesterday with the Ministry of Education, Ministry of Health and Welfare, and 17 metropolitan and provincial governments.

Since norovirus food poisoning can be transmitted not only through food but also through personal contact or contaminated environments, children showing symptoms of food poisoning should refrain from attending school as much as possible. Additionally, thorough disinfection of patients' vomit, bathrooms, and surrounding areas is necessary. A Ministry of Food and Drug Safety official emphasized, "In daily life, washing hands and eating thoroughly cooked food are the most reliable ways to prevent food poisoning."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.