{"id":342928,"date":"2026-07-17T00:59:14","date_gmt":"2026-07-17T00:59:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/342928\/"},"modified":"2026-07-17T00:59:14","modified_gmt":"2026-07-17T00:59:14","slug":"broward-doctor-explains-diarrhea-causing-parasite-as-cases-rise-nbc-6-south-florida","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/342928\/","title":{"rendered":"Broward doctor explains diarrhea-causing parasite as cases rise \u2013 NBC 6 South Florida"},"content":{"rendered":"

Cases of a diarrhea-causing parasite have increased in South Florida<\/a>. According to the Florida Department of Health, as of July 11, there are 17 confirmed cyclosporiasis cases in Miami-Dade County, seven in Broward County and one in Monroe County. Statewide, there are about 100 cases.<\/p>\n

In a live special edition of NBC6’s Your Health, Dr. Cornelius Powell<\/a>, chief medical officer at Broward Health North, answered questions submitted via YouTube<\/a>. <\/p>\n

Subscribe to our YouTube channel! NBC6 South Florida <\/a><\/p>\n

He said the illness is caused by Cyclospora<\/a>, a parasite commonly found in contaminated water and fresh produce.<\/p>\n

“It generally lives in contaminated water, but sometimes food as well. Think green leafy vegetables and unwashed fruits,” Powell said.<\/p>\n

Nationally, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has reported more than 1,600 confirmed cases and is investigating additional reports. <\/p>\n

What is cyclosporiasis?<\/p>\n

Cyclosporiasis is a parasitic infection that typically develops about a week after a person consumes contaminated food or water. Symptoms can last for weeks and often include severe watery diarrhea, fatigue, nausea and stomach cramps.<\/p>\n

“The buzzword today is explosive diarrhea,” Powell said. “It can last several weeks and it is easily treated with an antibiotic if it is confirmed that you do have this.”<\/p>\n

Doctors say the illness itself has not caused any reported deaths in the United States, but complications from dehydration can become serious.<\/p>\n

“If you have such severe diarrhea, you’re losing not only water, but all of your electrolytes,” Powell said. “People can get up to heart arrhythmias as a result of these electrolytes being depleted.”<\/p>\n

Health officials have not yet identified the exact source of the outbreak. However, investigators are closely examining fresh produce, including leafy greens, fruits and cilantro.<\/p>\n

“We don’t have a definitive source yet, but there’s a high likelihood that this parasite lives on green leafy vegetables,” Powell said.<\/p>\n

The CDC<\/a> and National Institutes of Health<\/a> are continuing their investigation, a process Powell said could take weeks or longer.<\/p>\n

Powell emphasized that people should continue eating fruits and vegetables but take precautions.<\/p>\n

Key recommendations:<\/p>\n

Wash fruits and vegetables thoroughly before eating<\/p>\n

Cook foods to an internal temperature of 158 degrees<\/p>\n

Avoid untreated water<\/p>\n

Stay hydrated if symptoms develop<\/p>\n

Seek medical attention if diarrhea becomes severe or persistent<\/p>\n

“Wash your fruits and vegetables,” Powell said. “We should be doing that on a Monday-through-Sunday, 365-basis.”<\/p>\n

Most cases can be diagnosed through stool testing. Powell advised people not to ignore symptoms that persist beyond a few days.<\/p>\n

Seek medical care if you experience:<\/p>\n

Persistent watery diarrhea<\/p>\n

Nausea and vomiting<\/p>\n

Dizziness or fainting<\/p>\n

Weakness from dehydration<\/p>\n

Symptoms lasting several days<\/p>\n

“If you’re feeling faint, or if you’re just feeling generally weak, it’s time to go to the emergency department,” Powell said.<\/p>\n

Doctors may wait for test results before prescribing antibiotics because unnecessary antibiotic use can worsen diarrhea and contribute to other complications.<\/p>\n

Can It Spread Person to Person?<\/p>\n

Unlike many common stomach illnesses, person-to-person transmission of cyclosporiasis is less common. The parasite requires time to mature before becoming infectious.<\/p>\n

“You can have person-to-person transmission with cyclosporiasis, but it’s less common because of the amount of time that it takes” for the parasite to develop, Powell said.<\/p>\n

Important Facts About Cyclosporiasis<\/p>\n

Symptoms typically appear about one week after exposure<\/p>\n

The illness can last two to three weeks without treatment<\/p>\n

Some people may have mild or no symptoms<\/p>\n

Chlorinated swimming pools may not completely eliminate the parasite<\/p>\n

Proper washing of produce remains the best defense while investigators search for the outbreak’s source<\/p>\n

“Everybody needs help sometime, and that’s why we’re here,” Powell said. “This too shall pass, whether it’s by itself or with an antibiotic.”<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Cases of a diarrhea-causing parasite have increased in South Florida. According to the Florida Department of Health, as…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":342929,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[17],"tags":[28,249,251,250,571,11244],"class_list":["post-342928","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-fort-lauderdale","tag-florida","tag-fort-lauderdale","tag-fort-lauderdale-headlines","tag-fort-lauderdale-news","tag-health","tag-health-wellness"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/342928","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=342928"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/342928\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/342929"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=342928"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=342928"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=342928"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}