The week before Thanksgiving, some kind of stomach bug, which I suspect was norovirus, spread like wildfire among my daughter's daycare. Several of her classmates became sick and like dominos so did the parents, including us.
So I was more than sympathetic when I came across this video by John Green (of the vlogbrothers fame and author of "The Fault in Our Stars") about his family's Thanksgiving troubles with a norovirus infection that seems to have left no GI system untouched in their household.
Winter, from about November to April, is prime norovirus season. The treacherous illness, which as Green says "has amazing superpowers," spreads when you come into contact with feces or vomit of an infected person. It can take less than a pinhead of virus particles to make this happen. Unlike other viruses, it can live on surfaces for surprising long periods, which is how a reusable grocery bag caused an outbreak among a girls soccer team in 2012. Plus, an infected person can continue to shed the virus for about three or four days after recovering. It's possible to disinfect after an infection, but it's a pretty intense job.
Given these characteristics it's not surprising that this tiny virus (even by virus standards) causes about 20 million illnesses each year. Although for most people it's a mild illness, for the very young, old or those with compromised immune systems--it can be severe. About 56,000-71,000 people are hospitalized and 570-800 die from norovirus infections.
The situation is worse in developing countries, where, as Green points out, rehydration therapy is harder to come by for the most vulnerable. About 200,000 deaths are caused by norovirus infections in poor parts of the world.
In his typical funny and thoughtful style, Green talks about what lack of simple--and cheap--rehydration therapy means for many on our planet. It's one more thing that it's easy to take for granted, and one more thing to be thankful for.
Previously: Stanford pediatrician and others urge people to shun raw milk and products and Science weighs in on food safety and the three-second rule
