As Ebola ravages Congo, experts warn of a link to the consumption of bushmeat, AP reports, according to UNN.
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While Ebola is not typically spread through food, cases in Africa have been linked to the hunting, butchering, and processing of meat from infected animals, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Congo's government has confirmed more than 1,000 suspected cases and at least 220 deaths since the Ebola outbreak was declared on May 15. The virus appears to have been spreading undetected for weeks, and the World Health Organization suspects it is much more widespread than reported.
Ebola, named after a tributary of the Congo River, was first identified in 1976 during simultaneous outbreaks in Congo and what is now South Sudan. Outbreaks are believed to begin with the transmission of the virus to a human from an infected animal, such as a fruit bat. These cross-species infections often occur when people touch and eat bushmeat, experts say.
But because Ebola outbreaks occur only sporadically in communities that regularly consume bushmeat, some people "do not believe in the link," while others are "completely unaware" of the health threat posed by eating bushmeat, said Dr. Misaki Wayengera, a microbiologist who advises the Ugandan Ministry of Health on epidemics.
"It is very difficult to change some of these core practices," he said.
Local residents have paid a high price for episodic Ebola outbreaks, whose bloody symptoms can terrorize entire villages and lead many to believe they have been placed under an evil spell.
The Ebola virus is responsible for 17 outbreaks in Congo and many others across the region. The deadliest outbreak in West Africa between 2014 and 2016 infected approximately 28,000 people and claimed more than 11,300 lives.
According to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, which studied the Ebola risk associated with the consumption and handling of bushmeat following the West African epidemic, the spillover of Ebola from animals to humans is rare, but "their consequences are nonetheless catastrophic."
WHO Director-General states that Ebola outbreak in Congo can be stopped29.05.26, 06:38