Daily HealthBeat Tip

Babies and salmonella

From the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, I’m Ira Dreyfuss with HHS HealthBeat.

The food poisoning bacteria salmonella can make babies very sick, even sending many to the hospital. But how can a baby get salmonella?

Frederick Angulo of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and his colleagues, checked data on children who got salmonella before they were one year old. Their findings are in the American Academy of Pediatrics’ journal, Pediatrics.

The researchers found some things that raised babies’ risk of salmonella infection. Among them: riding in a shopping cart next to meat and poultry, and being around reptiles.

But Angulo says breastfeeding protected babies.

"Fifty percent of all salmonella infections in infants could be prevented if children were breastfed until they were at least six months of age." (eight seconds)

Angulo says parents can help even more by washing their hands, especially after handling meat or poultry.

Learn more at www.hhs.gov.

HHS HealthBeat is a production of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. I'm Ira Dreyfuss.

Last revised: December 4, 2006

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