CDPH Lifts Warning about Mussels from Sonoma County
Date: January 19, 2018
Number: 18-006
SACRAMENTO āThe California Department of Public Health (CDPH) today announced it is lifting the health advisory related to sport-harvested mussels in Sonoma County. The advisory had been issued due to dangerous levels of a naturally occurring toxin that can cause illness or death. Recent testing shows concentrations of paralytic shellfish poisoning (PSP) toxins have declined to safe or undetectable levels. There have been no reported illnesses associated with this event.
PSP toxins affect the central nervous system, producing a tingling around the mouth and fingertips within a few minutes to a few hours after eating toxic shellfish. These symptoms are typically followed by loss of balance, lack of muscular coordination, slurred speech and difficulty swallowing. In severe poisonings, complete muscular paralysis and death from asphyxiation can occur.