Trichinosis

Trichinellosis, more commonly known as trichinosis, is a parasitic food-borne disease that is caused by eating raw or undercooked meats, particularly pork products infested with the larvae of a type of roundworm called Trichinella.

When you eat food, your stomach acid and enzymes digest what you eat. In the case of infected meat, the acid and enzymes break down the hard outside shell (cyst) of the larvae, freeing the adult worms. The worms then produce larvae which take up residence in your body tissues, especially muscle. Anyone can get trichinosis, regardless of age or health status.

How common is trichinosis?

Trichinosis (trichinellosis) occurs worldwide. An estimated 10,000 people per year get trichinosis worldwide. In the U.S., the numbers have fallen from the estimate of 400 cases per year during the 1940s to 16 cases per year in the time frame from 2011 to 2015.