3 Kansas Patients Die From Tainted Ice Cream

March 14, 2015 9:09 AM EDT

Three people in Kansas have died after eating contaminated Blue Bell Creameries brand ice cream products, health officials said.

A total of five people in the state were infected with life-threatening listeriosis, which is caused by exposure to the bacteria Listeria monocytogenes. Four of the ill individuals told health authorities they drank milkshakes made with a Blue Bell brand ice cream product called “Scoops” in the last month.

MORE: Here’s What Foods Are Most Likely To Have E. Coli or Salmonella

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) says all of the individuals were being treated in the same hospital for unrelated conditions, suggesting they acquired the infections at the hospital.

The tainted products came from one Blue Bell production facility in Brenham, Texas, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) said in a statement. The agency found three strains of the bacteria in Blue Bell Chocolate Chip Country Cookies, Great Divide Bars, Sour Pop Green Apple Bars, Cotton Candy Bars, Scoops, Vanilla Stick Slices, Almond Bars and No Sugar Added Moo Bars.

The CDC says Blue Bell has removed potentially contaminated products from the market, buy but that “contaminated ice cream products may still be in the freezers of consumers, institutions, and retailers.”

“One of our machines produced a limited amount of frozen snacks with a potential listeria problem,” Blue Bell said in a statement that noted it was the company’s first product recall in over a century. “When this was detected all products produced by this machine were withdrawn. Our Blue Bell team members recovered all involved products in stores and storage. This withdrawal in no way includes our half gallons, quarts, pints, cups, three gallon ice cream or the majority of take-home frozen snack novelties.”

You Asked: Your Top 10 Health Questions Answered

**You Asked: Are Cleanses Healthy?** Potions that claim to clear your body of toxins might sound alluring, but do they deliver?Illustration by Peter Oumanski for TIME

You Asked: Is Dessert Bad For Me? — **You Asked: Is Eating Dessert Really That Bad For Me?** Bad news for sweet-eaters—except if you end your meals with this kind of treat.Illustration by Peter Oumanski for TIME

**You Asked: What’s the Best Way to Whiten My Teeth?** Yes, teeth whitening actually works—but here's why you have to dish out major bucks to see results.Illustration by Peter Oumanski for TIME

You Asked: Is Meditation Worth It? — **You Asked: Is Meditation Really Worth It?** From easing stress to lowering heart disease risk, focusing your mind can do some amazing things for your body.Illustration by Peter Oumanski for TIME

**You Asked: What’s the Healthiest Sweetener?** Take a taste of the unsettled science of sweeteners.Illustration by Peter Oumanski for TIME

**You Asked: Should I Go Paleo?** The pros and cons of eating like a caveman.Illustration by Peter Oumanski for TIME

**You Asked: Is Cracking Your Knuckles Bad?** Here's what really happens to your joints when you snap, crackle and pop.Illustration by Peter Oumanski for TIME

**You Asked: Is Running on a Treadmill as Good as Running Outside?** You'll fool your body into thinking it's outside with this one small treadmill tweak.Illustration by Peter Oumanski for TIME

**You Asked: Does Laughing Have Real Health Benefits?** Here's proof that everybody could use a belly laugh.Illustration by Peter Oumanski for TIME

**You Asked: What Is My Poo Telling Me?** If you listen hard enough, you'll hear all kinds of health stories from #2.Illustration by Peter Oumanski for TIME

You Asked: Your Top 10 Health Questions Answered

More Must-Reads from TIME