Los Angeles health officials warned on Tuesday that a salmonella outbreak affecting several states might be linked with turtles. [Xinhua]

Los Angeles health officials warned on Tuesday that a salmonella outbreak affecting several states might be linked with turtles.

Evidence showed that people handling turtles were among those being infected with salmonella, the Los Angeles Department of Public Health (DPH) said in a statement.

The statement warned parents to be wary of buying turtles for their children.

"Turtles are natural carriers of salmonella bacteria," said DPH spokeswoman Sarah Kissell. "So we strongly urge parents not to buy those small turtles you might find in a dime store as pets for their children."

Kissell said if people do have pet turtles, they should take extra precautions to practice good hygiene.

"We found that children were getting sick because they were kissing their pet turtles. So we want parents to guard against such facial contact," she said. "Also, it's very important to wash your hands after handling turtles and other reptiles. So parents need to educate their children on how to safely handle these animals."

The salmonella outbreak, which was reported earlier this year, affected more than 100 people, included eight cases in the Los Angeles area. Symptoms of salmonella infection include bloody diarrhea, abdominal cramps, fever and vomiting.

"Unfortunately, salmonella isn't the easiest infection to track. Most people just think they have food poisoning and treat it at home. So unless a specific check is done for that bacteria, we don't really know there's a problem," said Kissell.

(Xinhua News Agency September 25, 2008)