How are Shigella bacteria transmitted?
People can be infected from foodborne Shigella by • Eating food or drinking beverages contaminated by food handlers infected with Shigella who didn’t wash their hands properly after using the bathroom. • Eating vegetables grown in fields containing sewage. • Eating food contaminated by flies which were bred in infected feces. • Drinking or swimming in contaminated water. S. sonnei is the most common type of Shigella in developed countries, including the United States. Outbreaks of shigellosis frequently occur in tropical or temperate climates, especially in areas with severe crowding and/or poor hygiene, which sometimes occur in day care and institutional settings. Some people have no symptoms but can still pass the bacteria to others. An extremely low number of organisms (10-100) is needed to transmit Shigella. Therefore, it is commonly transmitted by food service workers who are sick or infected, but have no symptoms, and who do not properly wash their hands after using the toilet. T
