I never thought I could use a Chia Head on a blog post (note, there is no indication that these heads are dangerous – just ugly)

As of June 2, 17 people from 10 U.S. states been sickened with Salmonella infections linked to the recalled chia seed powder, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). CDC notes that 12 of those 17 were infected with a strain of S. Newport and five with a strain of S. Hartford, two of the 17 have been hospitalized, and no deaths have been reported.  The outbreak strain of S. Hartford in five U.S. cases matches the outbreak strain in Canada, CDC added.

The Canadian Food Inspection Agency has updated its recall warning issued May 30 regarding sprouted chia seed powder to include additional product information identified during its food safety investigation.

The May 30 warning came after Advantage Health Matters and Back 2 the Garden announced they were recalling various products containing dried sprouted organic chia seed powder from the marketplace due to possible Salmonella contamination.

In Canada, two strains of Salmonella have been identified associated with this outbreak: Salmonella Newport and Salmonella Hartford. In total, 24 cases have been reported in Ontario (15), British Columbia (6), Alberta (1) and Quebec (2).

Food contaminated with Salmonella may not look or smell spoiled but can still make you sick. Young children, pregnant women, the elderly and people with weakened immune systems may contract serious and sometimes deadly infections. Healthy people may experience short-term symptoms such as fever, headache, vomiting, nausea, abdominal cramps and diarrhea. Long-term complications may include severe arthritis.