Mothers who breastfeed their babies for at least the first six months of life are also protecting their children against shigella, a severe form of diarrhea, according to a recent Bangladeshi study. Study author Mohammed Zobayer Chisti, an assistant researcher from the International Centre for Diarrhoeal Disease Research in Bangladesh, said that stopping breastfeeding for newborns had long-term consequences.  He said that newborn children who had proper breastfeeding were more likely to have shigella resistance…

Alan Bavley of the The Kansas City Star reports on the growing outbreak of shigella in the greater Kansas City area: The Kansas City area is going through an outbreak of a nasty and very contagious diarrheal disease called shigellosis, and scrupulous hand hygiene is the best way to keep from getting or spreading it.  More than 285 cases have been reported in the metropolitan area so far this year. The area typically averages just…

The number of affected people continues to grow as more come forward to report shigella infections after eating at a Lombard Subway restaurant. Dave Hass of the DuPage County Health Department said there are currently 116 confirmed shigella cases linked to the Subway restaurant as of today. Of those cases, 13 people were hospitalized and 12 were discharged.  Hass also said the source of the shigella is unknown at this time and might never be…

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