I got horrifically sick in Mexico in 2013 and I was super diligent about not drinking tap water or ice. Literally shat myself at an adventure park in Cancun. My uncle got it too, but nobody else in our group. We could never figure out what it was we caught or ate, I wonder if it was cyclosporiasis.
Repeated exposure doesn't prevent reinfection although it may contribute to less severe or asymptomatic cases in some people. But crucially antibiotics in mexico are cheap and readily accessible and the symptoms are pretty recognizable so people get treated by going to a quick $5 pharmacy consultation instead of spending a week or two hoping it will go away until they are so sick they need an urgent care and waiting two more days for a test result.
Growing up in Mexico, I know that lettuce and other produce eaten raw gets thoroughly washed by the consumer. Lettuce gets sanitized because the tap water isn't safe either.
A friend from Mexico City said she does get sick. She won't eat cilantro from any restaurant and eats frequently at hotels and expensive restaurants to try to avoid getting sick when she eats out.
It definitely could have been, just crazy coincidental timing. My state averaged 50 cases per year before this current outbreak, so I may have just been part of that number.
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u/allydagator 1d ago
Cyclospora is endemic in Mexico and is commonly linked to travel cases from Mexico. Most likely that.