Girl, 6, dies from E. coli after eating McDonald’s cheeseburger: Signs and symptoms to know

A 6-year-old girl from Massachusetts has died after contracting E. coli, which her mother believes stemmed from a contaminated cheeseburger the child had from McDonald’s.

Angelica Vazquez of Springfield, a happy and healthy child, fell ill on Nov. 1. Samantha Ocasio, the mother told masslive.com that her daughter ate Western Massachusetts McDonald’s a day before a night of trick-or-treating on Halloween, and fell ill the next evening. When her siblings ate chicken nuggets, Angelica chose to have a cheeseburger. According to the mother, she was the only person in the family to eat a cheeseburger from McDonald’s.

Ocasio, a mother of seven noticed her little girl throwing up the next evening. When asked if she needed to see a doctor, the child insisted that 'no her belly just hurts.'The mother assumed that it was a simple stomach bug, and gave Gatarode to the daughter. However, on Nov. 2, things took an unexpected turn when the child passed out and went into cardiac arrest after a bubble bath. The family rushed her to Baystate Medical Center, however, the child died 12 hours later.

In recent weeks, the CDC confirmed an E. coli outbreak linked to onions served at McDonald’s, with at least 75 people in 13 states getting sick.

After the outbreak, McDonald’s reportedly stopped selling the burgers and identified an alternate slivered onion supplier for about 900 restaurants. The restaurant also stated that, as of Nov. 14, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration had raised no food safety concerns related to its operations. "The FDA confirmed “there does not appear to be a continued food safety concern related to this outbreak at McDonald’s restaurants” and that all confirmed cases at this time originated before McDonald’s took action (announced on October 22, 2024) to remove slivered onions at select restaurants."
E.coli outbreak is a concern, which should be dealt with utmost seriousness.

According to the CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention), the symptoms of the infection depend on the kind of E. coli. Some of the common symptoms include severe stomach cramps, diarrhea, fever, nausea, and/or vomiting. The symptoms appear anywhere from a few days after consuming contaminated food or up to nine days later.

• Most people infected with Shiga toxin-producing E. coli experience severe stomach cramps, diarrhea (often bloody), and vomiting. These symptoms usually start 3 to 4 days after swallowing the bacteria. Most people recover without treatment after 5 to 7 days.
• Some people may develop serious kidney problems (hemolytic uremic syndrome, also called HUS) and would need to be hospitalized.

According to the CDC, you should call your healthcare provider if you have severe E. coli symptoms such as:

• Diarrhea for more than 3 days that is not improving.
• Bloody diarrhea.
• A fever higher than 102°F.
• Vomiting continuously that you cannot keep liquids down.
• Look for signs of dehydration, such as, not urinating much, dry mouth and throat, and feeling dizzy when standing up

Anyone can get infected with E.coli, but children younger than 5, adults 65 and older, people with weakened immune systems, and international travelers are more at risk.

Prevention

• Keep your hands clean.
• Follow four simple steps to food safety: clean, separate, cook, and chill.
• Do not drink unsafe water.
• Drink pasteurized milk and juices.