The plastic sacks you get at the supermarket are great for carrying your lunch, but they’re also good for transmitting the stomach flu virus.
Research published today in the Journal of Infectious Diseases debunks the myth that you can avoid the illness, known as the norovirus, if you stay away from people who’ve been infected. It centres around a group of 17 soccer players and their four chaperones staying in a hotel for a tournament were all infected because they all encountered the same flu-tainted plastic bag.
One kid got sick in a bathroom where there happened to be plastic bag full of food. A worried parent took her home, and they left without having any contact with the rest of the group. But another person went back for the sack, and gave out its contents to the others. This move was the nail in the coffin for this pukeapalooza, and everyone fell ill.
Though it’s been assumed the norovirus could be contracted like this, the study marks the first time it’s actually been confirmed. Pretty stupid move on the part of the person that decided it was OK for people to ingest food that had been in the same room as a girl spewing her guts out. Here’s the takeaway, which is also common sense: If someone has been sick around food, chuck both the grub and its container, or cue the hurling. [Journal of Infectious Diseases via NPR]
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