7 cases of the diarrhea-causing illness cyclosporiasis confirmed in Alberta

The province says seven cases of cyclosporiasis have been confirmed in Alberta, but are not linked to an outbreak in the U.S.

Seven cases of the diarrhea-causing illness cyclosporiasis have been reported in Alberta, according to the province.

Officials say none of the cases have been tied to an outbreak in the United States.

“Five of these cases were identified within the past six weeks, and all had illness onset dates within the period reported by the U.S. CDC (May 1 to July 9),” Jaye Lang, the press secretary for the minister of primary and preventative health services, wrote in an email to CTV News Edmonton.

“Six of the seven cases were associated with recent travel to Mexico, while none involved travel to the United States.”

Lang says travel histories, food exposures and other potential links are being investigated in all of the cases.

Data from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released Tuesday shows that nearly 7,000 people in multiple U.S. states have gotten sick with cyclosporiasis, a gastrointestinal illness that causes watery diarrhea for six to seven weeks.

The illness, which is caused by the cyclospora parasite, is not usually life threatening and is typically treated with antibiotics.

The Associated Press reported on Friday that the source of the outbreak had been tied to lettuce from Mexico served at Taco Bell locations across five U.S. states.

With files from The Canadian Press and The Associated Press