Protecting families from contaminated food and water
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Protecting families from contaminated food and water
Posted in E. coli,Our Blog,Outbreaks & Recalls on June 21, 2026
Dangerous E. coli bacteria could be the hidden pandemic the world has overlooked. New research indicates that these germs could be as fast moving through populations as Swine Flu and other pandemics.
Even worse, some of these bacterial strains are resistant to common antibiotics.
Pandemic-speed growth and antimicrobial resistance could be a major factor in global health.
Here’s what we know about this hidden pandemic, a bit about E. coli and how to know if you have it, and ways to protect yourself from this growing problem.
Researchers from the Wellcome Sanger Institute, the University of Oslo, the University of Helsinki, Aalto University in Finland, and their collaborators recently published a study in Nature Communications on their findings of three major E. coli strains found in the UK and Norway. Of which, two are the most common cause of E. coli complications like urinary tract and bloodstream infections.
For the first time ever, these researchers have managed to predict the rate at which a person can spread harmful gut bacteria to those around them.
Research previously performed on viruses. Though quite useful when applied to these harmful gut germs. With the groundwork laid out for E. coli, other bacterial pathogen can be studied to better understand and more effectively control these types of infections.
You may be wondering, what made these scientists choose E. coli. A bacteria mostly associated with food poisoning.
Believe it or not, E. coli is a leading cause of infections worldwide. The germ is transmitted through what is known as fecal-oral route. It is spread through common contact with objects, within households, and from food contaminated by someone who is infected.
While initial symptoms of E. coli infections can be limited to the digestive system, this illness can develop into serious and life-threatening complications.
The symptoms of E. coli infections can vary from mild to severe. Most people begin feeling sick around three to four days after exposure. However, some may begin feeling sick as early as one day or as late as 10 days (or more) after eating contaminated food.
Symptoms to look out for include:
Normally healthy people generally recover from E. coli infection within five to seven days. Some people, on the other hand, may experience other complications. These groups are considered “higher risk.”
The elderly, young children (under five years), and those with a weakened immune system may experience more severe illness or develop serious complications.
Hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS) and bloodstream infections are some of the more common complications.
HUS, is a rare, but serious health condition that can develop after becoming sick with a toxin-producing bacteria like E. coli.
This complication develops when toxins rupture blood cells. These ruptured bloods cells clog the filtering aspects of the kidney. This can result in kidney failure and cause other downstream negative health effects.
People with HUS require hospitalization and monitoring to prevent further damage.
Symptoms to look out for include decreased urination, paleness in cheeks and inside of lower eyelids, and fatigue.
If you have been sick with symptoms consistent with E. coli infection and begin experiencing these HUS symptoms, get medical help right away!
When E. coli breach the bloodstream, the patient can become septic. Sepsis is the system-wide infection. According to the study, about 40% of those with an antimicrobial resistant E. coli infection in the UK will develop a bloodstream infection.
To uncover how quickly E. coli bacteria spread throughout a population, an R0 number was calculated. This “basic reproduction number” has been used to describe viruses and is an indicator on whether an infection will continue to spread. Or die out.
Essentially, the R0 is the number of people a single infected person can infect.
Researchers analyzed E. coli data and ran it through a specialized software platform called ELFI (Engine for Likelihood-Free Interference).
The three major strains of E. coli were analyzed.
Even without air droplets being a transmission vector, one serotype, ST131-A, was calculated to spread as rapidly as viruses that have historically caused major outbreaks worldwide. The authors compared this spread to that of Swine Flu.
Two other strains were analyzed. ST131-C1 and ST131-C2. Those strains have been found to be resistant to several antibiotic classes. These did not appear to transmit rapidly between healthy individuals. The same did not hold true, however, in more vulnerable populations.
Such as those in hospitals and health care facilities.
This new way of analyzing outbreak data is advantageous.
“By having a large amount of systematically collected data, it was possible to build a simulation model to predict R0 for E. coli. To our knowledge, this was not jus the firs for E. coli, but a first for any bacteria that live in our gut microbiome.” Said Fanni Ojala, M.Sc., and co-first author at Aalto University in Finland. “Now that we have this model, it could be possible to apply it to other bacterial strains in the future, allowing us to understand, track, and hopefully prevent the spread of antibiotic-resistant infections.”
Professor Jukka Corander, senior author at the Wellcome Sanger Institute and the University of Oslo supports this finding. “Having the R0 for E. coli allows us to see the spread of bacteria through the population in much clearer detail, and compare this to other infections. Now that we can see how rapidly some of these bacterial strains spread, it is necessary to understand their genetic drivers.”
If you’d like to know more about food safety topics in the news, like “Could E. coli Be a Hidden Pandemic? New Research Show These Bacteria Spread Faster Than Viruses,” check out the Make Food Safe Blog. We regularly update trending topics, foodborne infections in the news, recalls, and more! Stay tuned for quality information to help keep your family safe, while The Lange Law Firm, PLLC strives to Make Food Safe!
By: Heather Van Tassell (contributing writer, non-lawyer)