We know washing our hands is the best way to prevent spreading germs, but a new study shows that one in ten people don’t wash their hands at all after using the bathroom. Only 5% do it right. It’s a big deal when you consider that half of the foodborne illness outbreaks happen because people either don’t wash hands or [...]
National Recreational Water Illness and Injury Prevention Week is coming up next week. Healthy swimming depends on paying attention to basic health, hygiene, sun-safety, and what swimmers bring into the pool (and what they don’t). For starters, remind your kids to take a sunscreen, hydration, and bathroom break every hour when swimming. You might also want to start [...]
This week’s Vital Signs report shows that antibiotics are being overpowered by lethal germs called carbapenem-resistant Enterobacteriaceae or (CRE).These germs cause lethal infections in patients that get inpatient medical care in hospitals, long-term care facilities and nursing homes. In their normal forms, the germs- in the Enterobacteriaceae family (e.g. E. coli) are a normal part of our digestive system. However, some of them have [...]
This year’s flu really packed a wallop all across the country. In Arizona we’ve had almost 250% more cases than last year so far. But the good news is, this week’s flu report shows we’re on the downhill slope. We’ve seen fewer new cases in the past couple weeks - but it’s not completely gone. [...]
Just in time for the holidays, we’re got our first lab confirmed case of influenza – actually two cases. Influenza has probably been in the state for a while now, but we don’t officially start counting the cases until there is a case confirmed at our lab. The vaccine was approved this summer and fights 3 [...]
In 1862, a French chemist named Louis Pasteur discovered that heat kills germs in liquids, preventing bacterial growth, food spoilage and foodborne illnesses. He used his discovery to invent methods that have been used for the last 150 years as a sanitary treatment for milk – which at the time was a prime source of TB. His experiment? He exposed [...]
I was in Atlanta a couple of weeks ago for new health officer orientation and was able to meet with Dr. Frieden (the new head of the CDC) a couple of times. Each time that we met he referred to a general theme that the CDC will be using over the next 3 years to drive [...]
