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I read that although rat lungworm comes from SE Asia, few people get infected there because they don't eat raw veggies.
So I've been cooking or peeling all local produce, and buying mainland lettuce.
edited for clarity
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"and buying mainland lettuce"
I can't attest to the accuracy of the information, but I had read that RLW can spread by rats / snails / slugs crossing over mainland lettuce at Hawaii air / marine shipping warehouses, barges, distributors, grocery stores, etc... some of the creatures that spread RLW might even live on the conveyances that cross the Pacific. Just because something is from the mainland, doesn't mean it's immune to local problems. These vectors don't care where the produce was GROWN, just where it can be ACCESSED.
We wash/rinse fresh produce, regardless of origin. If somebody is extra paranoid, they do sell cut mainland lettuce in a sealed bag.
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The lettuce sold at Localvore in Hilo is grown hydroponically inside a "clean" screen house with no access for slugs or rodents.
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Rat lungworms is a parasitic worm that enters the body and burrows through tissue causing damage. There is no immunity developed if you have had it before.
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I was told in a Master Gardner class that RLD is found widely in Thailand but they always cook their vegetables so don't get the disease. That is wrong. Ever had green papaya salad? Spring rolls? Our Thai cook book has a section on preparing uncooked vegetable dishes. We have much to learn about this deeply frightening disease.
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I took a group out to eat at a fancy restaurant in Philippines. When the fresh salad was served they had never seen that before, and asked "can you eat that?
Think I will start passing on the fresh local veggies at the Natch as they were never that close to Godliness.
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"with no access for slugs or rodents"
I've read repeatedly over the years about how the best vector control specialists in the world have been unable to keep rats and other vermin out of the Whitehouse (
http://www.sternenvironmental.com/blog/2...ite-house/ for a primer). This is not a political statement, I'm *really* referring to full-time pest control workers servicing 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue without complete success.
I guess my point is that if the world's superpower, with unlimited funding, poisons, traps, cats, and snipers can't keep the rodents out of the President's bedroom, what chance does a screen house in Puna have?
Don't get me wrong- I would take the screen house hydroponic lettuce over a mystery product from a farmers market any day. But I'm washing the heck out of it regardless.
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terracore - think of all of those underground tunnels under the White House...
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You mean like lava tubes?
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I was misinformed about my RL status; I just got a letter from the lab today saying it is "ambiguous." My husband tested negative. Some people have all the luck.
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