Expert shares tips on how to prevent parasite causing 'explosive diarrhea' after man hospitalized

A medical professional has shared his tips on how to prevent falling victim to a recent parasite outbreak, which has lead to some people experiencing 'explosive diarrhea'.

Latest Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) data states that close to two thousand people have been infected by the parasite, Cyclospora cayetanensis, while 5,000 cases are under investigation.

It remains unclear what's caused the outbreak at this stage, though popular fast-food chain Taco Bell has recalled lettuce from some of its restaurants.

The FDA said in a recent report that the restaurant chain should be avoided in the states of Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio, and West Virginia.

Alonso Zaragoza, from Chicago, claims he has even been hospitalized by the diarrhea parasite, telling press that he's been unable to sleep for over a week since the onset of symptoms began.

“I’m probably at like 80% that’s still better than a lot of people right now,” he told NBC Chicago. “It was just every hour and a half going to the washroom. I don’t think I slept more than an hour and a half continuously in the last week.”

Taco Bell has recalled products as a result of the outbreak (Mario Tama/Getty Images)

Symptoms progressed to the point where Zaragoza noticed blood in his stool, and after a trip to ER, he was allegedly told to be suffering from the illness.

Nathan Payne, a nurse practitioner at Alpha Care Urgent Care in Ocean Springs, has been speaking to WXXV25 to share his tips on how to avoid falling ill.

"Cyclospora is a parasite. It is something typically related to contaminated ground water or contaminated produce. It’s fairly easily killed with cooking," the health expert explained.

"When it gets into your body and populates it can cause infection, which causes sometimes 20-30 bouts of watery diarrhea a day. It can cause bloating, excess flatulence, some mild abdominal pain, and a low-grade fever sometimes accompanies it."

Payne added: "It’s been linked to bagged lettuce, which are just chopped up pieces of lettuce, because they are hard to wash and decontaminate. So how do we avoid this? One way is if you’re gonna use lettuce, let’s buy the whole heads of lettuce, then lets strip off the outer layers of this and wash the rest of it.

Many have experienced 'explosive diarrhea' after being infected by the parasite (Getty Stock Photo)

"Eating raw vegetables at this point is probably not a good idea. We should probably wash them to remove pesticides anyway, or wax preservatives. For vegetables, if we cook them to 158 to 160 degrees, which is thoroughly cooked, it’s gonna kill this."

A Cyclospora infection is not life threatening, though it's advised you get medical advice if you believe you've been infected.

The CDC advises: "A Cyclospora infection sometimes goes away on its own. But if you don’t treat it, your symptoms may last for a month or longer. This puts you at risk of severe dehydration and other complications."