What is E. coli infection?
Escherichia coli (E. coli) are bacteria that normally live in the intestines of humans and animals. There are many strains of E. coli bacteria. Most of them are harmless. However, one particular strain, E. coli O157:H7, may cause serious illness in people. Cattle may be a prime source of infection for people What are the symptoms? Diarrhea (which often becomes bloody) and stomach cramps Slight fever (often no fever). Symptoms appear from 1 – 10 days after exposure, usually 2 – 4 days. Some infected people may have mild diarrhea or no symptoms at all. Symptoms usually appear about three days after exposure, with a range of one to nine days. How is it spread? The bacteria are acquired by eating food containing E. coli. The bacteria live in the intestines of some healthy cattle and contamination of the meat may occur in the slaughtering process. Eating meat that is rare or inadequately cooked is the most common way of getting the infection. Person-to-person transmission can occur if infec
