Drug Resistant Sexually Transmitted Diarrhea Superbug On The Rise

Well, if it wasn't the lettuce, it'd be something else we all like.

We're not trying to spread panic, but there's a new bug out there that is becoming resistant to any drugs currently on the market, and you should know about it.

Doctors are calling this new strain of the Shigella bacteria, a bacteria that infects nearly half a million people a year in the United States that causes diarrhea with blood, mucus, stomach pain, cramps, fever and vomiting.

The scientists have been studying how this thing is spreading, and it's of course, through poop.

Person holding toilet paper, touching backside

Shigella bacteria spreads through infected turd that gets in your mouth. If you're saying "I quit eating turd years ago," well, it's getting in your mouth through unwashed hands, or tainted food and water. Kids under 5 are most likely to get it transmitted this way, but there's a new concern from the scientists.

The highest rise in shigella infection is coming from gay and bisexual men. They're calling it "endemic" levels, meaning it is constantly present in those communities.

“Many men who have sex with men are unaware of the serious and increasing risk posed by sexually transmitted Shigella,” said Cambridge geneticist Kate Baker, a lead author on the July study.

The problem is, the wrong treatment of the bug is making it hard to manage. Drug-resistant strains are on the rise, according to the CDC.

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“This disease has gone from being relatively treatable with off-the-shelf drugs to being close to untreatable over the course of the last decade or so,” Baker said.

It's because when you don't use the correct antibiotic, something called "bystander resistance" takes place, where the antibiotics don't kill the bacteria, but give it the opportunity to get stronger and more resistant to antibiotics.

The CDC says that the most drug-resistant shigella infections are in adult men, with the most serious strains being spread through sexual contact. Research shows that those who contracted shigella through sex were hospitalized for four to five days on average.

a man holding his stomach with his hands

To stop the spread, and protect yourself, the CDC recommends the following:

• Washing hands, genitals, and anus with soap and water before and after sexual activity. This applies to everyone having anal, oral, and vaginal sex — not just men who have sex with men.
• Washing sex toys with soap and water
• Using barriers like condoms and dental dams