6 more states added to salmonella list

ATLANTA, June 13 (UPI) -- Sickness blamed on salmonella-tainted tomatoes jumped to 228 cases Friday with six new states added, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said.

The CDC found 61 new cases of Salmonella Saintpaul infection in Florida, Georgia, Missouri, New York, Tennessee and Vermont. That brings to 23 the number of states in which infections have been confirmed since mid-April, CNN reported.

Some restaurants and grocery stores removed tomatoes from their inventories after reports of the salmonella outbreak surfaced. At least 23 cases required hospitalization, the CDC said.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has issued a warning against consuming raw red plum, red round and red Roma tomatoes from geographic areas it hasn't approved.

Contracting salmonella can cause serious, sometimes fatal injuries, especially in children, the aged and those with weak immune systems.