Aw shucks! It’s pretty risky to eat raw and under-cooked oysters

July 25, 2018.Reading time 4 minutes.

As waters warm up, shellfish beds become breeding grounds for bacteria, including Vibrio parahaemolyticus or “Vibrio,” one of the most common causes of illness related to raw oyster consumption. And this year, we’re setting records. Why are so many people getting sick? We sat down with Vance Kawakami, our communicable disease epidemiologist, to better understand […]

Local cases of E. coli linked to romaine lettuce outbreak

April 27, 2018.Reading time 5 minutes.

Two King County siblings, both under age 5, have been diagnosed with E. coli 0157:H7 infections that genetically match the ongoing national outbreak linked to romaine lettuce. One child was hospitalized and has since been discharged. Both children have recovered and neither child developed hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS), a type of kidney failure that can result […]

A tour of Public Health in action: LIVE from Public Health Week

April 6, 2018.Reading time 2 minutes.

What are the many ways Public Health touches your life? For Public Health Week, we took to the streets to learn how public health professionals are working to promote health across King County. From restaurant inspectors to school-based health providers to STD experts, our staff went live on Facebook to show us how they get […]

The Food Safety Rating System is one year old!

February 7, 2018.Reading time 8 minutes.

In 2017, King County launched our new food safety rating system with the goal of making it the best rating system in the country. With a year under our belt, Public Health – Seattle & King County’s food safety team is proud to say that the new system has achieved measurable success. Over 75 percent […]

‘Don’t stuff that turkey’ and other Thanksgiving food safety tips

November 22, 2017.Reading time 5 minutes.

Sure, Thanksgiving is a joyful time spent with family and friends, but if you’re like me and you’re cooking two turkeys, eight side dishes, three desserts and an entire appetizer spread, it can be stressful too. Plus, now that I work in public health, my guests expect that the food I prepare will not make […]

Community health advocate Q&A: Families, fish and the Duwamish Superfund site

October 27, 2017.Reading time 8 minutes.

Fish are a healthy component of many diets, but depending where fish spend their time, they can pick up contaminants like mercury or polychlorinated bipheyls (PCBs) in their bodies. These chemicals are introduced to the environment from industrial and historical uses and enter the food chain, accumulating in seafood, marine mammals and humans. We talked with Mai Hoang, a Vietnamese-speaking Community Health Advocate who is working with Public Health – Seattle and King County. She shared with us what drives her work as well as some of the challenges she encounters in sharing this information with her community.