Nick Palmiter thought he would be fine. When the stomach cramps hit at the beginning of July, the 29-year-old from Monroe County, Michigan, shrugged it off. But days turned into weeks, and the pain became unbearable.
"I was absolutely in pain," Palmiter said. "And it was just to the point to where I was probably using the bathroom at least 15 to 20 times a day." He described the sensation as a constant pressure and bubbling, "almost like you have a balloon in your stomach."
“Historic US cyclospora outbreak sickens thousands; Michigan man describes using bathroom 15-20 times daily.”
At a coworker's urging, he visited an urgent care facility. Staff told him he needed to go to an emergency room immediately. There, he learned he had cyclosporiasis — an intestinal illness caused by the cyclospora parasite, whose symptoms include "explosive diarrhoea."
Palmiter is one of thousands caught in what officials have called the largest recorded cyclospora outbreak in US history. The parasite has infected people across 41 states. Michigan has been the hardest hit, with over 7,000 cases. In Monroe County, a rural area on the state's eastern boundary where Palmiter lives, 286 of the county's roughly 154,000 residents have been infected.
"It makes you feel absolutely sick," Palmiter said. "Like you have nothing left to give."
The outbreak has triggered what Palmiter described as "anxiety" and "scared" among locals. His mother, Michelle Palmiter, said she is "seeing a lot of people that are freaking out about it." Her niece threw out all the produce in her fridge — including a perfectly good watermelon. "Instead of doing a good scrub and then cutting it up, she's just throwing it out," Michelle said.
On social media chat boards for Monroe County, residents are posting about similar precautions. One mother said her toddler is "living off chicken nuggets and Goldfish [crackers] ever since this started." Michelle still eats fruits and vegetables, but only cooked ones. "Definitely not going out to eat at all," she said.
Part of the panic, Michelle added, stems from what she sees as a fumbled government response. "We're not trusting anything they're putting out about it."
The outbreak has already prompted Taco Bell to remove lettuce from its menu in the US after links to the parasite were suspected. With no end in sight, residents like Palmiter are left wondering when the nightmare will end.
