CDC: Foodborne diseases on the decline in the U.S.

Thursday, April 14th 2005, 12:28 pm

By: News On 6

ATLANTA (AP) _ Major foodborne diseases _ including E. coli, salmonella and listeria _ have dropped dramatically in the United States since the late 1990s, the government said Tuesday.

The government attributed the decline to better food-industry practices.

The rate of E. coli infections has dropped 42 percent, to 0.9 cases per 100,000 people, since 1996-98, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said.

Similarly, campylobacter infections fell 31 percent (to 12.9 cases per 100,000); cryptosporidium dropped 40 percent (13.2 cases per 100,000), and yersinia infections decreased 45 percent (3.9 cases per 100,000).

The drop in salmonella was the smallest _ 8 percent, to 14.7 cases per 100,000 _ mainly because health officials still know little about the bacteria, the CDC said.