What Other Parents Are Reading Campylobacter bacteria, usually
transmitted in contaminated food or water, can infect the
gastrointestinal tract and cause diarrhea, fever, and cramps.
Good hand-washing and food safety habits will help prevent
Campylobacter infections (or campylobacteriosis), which usually
clear up on their own but sometimes are treated with
antibiotics. Campylobacter infects over 2 million people each
year, and it's a leading cause of diarrhea and food-borne
illness. Babies under 1 year old, teens, and young adults are
most commonly affected. Campylobacter is found in the intestines
of many wild and domestic animals. The bacteria are passed in
their feces, which can lead to infection in humans via
contaminated food, meats (especially chicken), water taken from
contaminated sources (streams or rivers near where animals
graze), and milk products that haven't been pasteurized.
Bacteria can be transmitted from person to person when someone
comes into contact with fecal matter from an infected pers