News says Norovirus will be massive. Wondering if one can do anything to help avoid it....

[bigbelle]

Holidays! Kids home! I do not want this. A few weeks ago I cut out most sugar trying to boost immunity (I read bacteria feeds on sugar). Bought some vitamins called Bee Prepared immune support (bee propolis?) & zinc at holland barret, washing hands like a maniac. Avoiding crowded areas. So far so good but sounds like it's spreading like crazy. ANy suggestions? Certain foods one could eat to get stronger?

[OneHandFlapping]

Not every stomach bug is Norovirus. There are plenty of others. If you or your family have had D&V there is no way of proving whether it is Norovirus or something else, especially if only one person gets it.

The thing about Norovirus is that as well as the faecal/oral transmission route, it is transmitted by inhaling microparticles of vomit that are created whenever someone is sick. These also contaminate any surfaces around the sick person.

There are examples of an outbreak of Norovirus starting when one person vomits in a crowded room. There are also examples where one infected person contaminates food, including raspberries.

[HousewifefromBethlehem]

There was one at a concert, the stone roses. Out of 1500 people 500 caught it. It was traced to a puddle of vomit on the steps.

[HousewifefromBethlehem]

I love a good sick story, me!

[insprognito]

My whole extended family have been struck down almost. My youngest has had it twice in 2 weeks. She's just turned one got better then 4 days later started with it again. The same thing happened with my neices and nephew so maybe its two different bugs?
I've just started a new job so was really worried about catching it. I've been constantly washing hands, door knobs and switches etc ,so far I'm ok. Have cleaned no end of sick up and been changing lots of bad nappies, dd was sick on me twice too so maybe I've just been lucky. I believe it's caused by a virus so anti-bac products aren't effective.

[ChristmasPickles]

Can anyone tell me how they keep their mobile phones clear of a virus? Especially if wipes don't work.

I'm well aware that I've used my phone out and about or when I've just got in and haven't washed my hands and thought hmmm if I have picked up something on my hands I've just transferred it onto my phone...

[InNeedOfBrandyButter]

pickles I would add bleach, washing up liquid and boiling kettle water to the sink, swish cloth about and wring it very very very dry and wipe. Never thought about phone before! off to go cleaning esp since I use the bus every day

[EvenBetter]

I caught it on Monday, it's now Saturday and all I've eaten in almost a week is some chips, a cereal bar and 100000 ice lollies, it's hell. My husband caught it yesterday.

About 10 people I know have had it and I too have seen piles of sick in the street this week, it's like a zombie apocalypse round here.

[careergirl]

Confess I am a bit worried as been diagnosed with neutropenia - just trying to bolster immune system with vit c maintaining good hygiene etc
that said remember big panic over swine flu, bird flu, SARS et al.... all media fuelled...

[SledsImOn]

Careergirl I hope you will be Ok.

I do think that the amount of vomit on the streets is more to do with the party seacon than anything else tbh - no one who is ill will be out and about, probably, and we always get a lot of this especially at weekends towards the end of the student term...people are just out on the piss a lot more.

[SledsImOn]

season, sorry

[RandomMess]

I've had norovirus, the tummy cramps lasted for 2 weeks after the D&V stopped - however it seems to have boosted my immunity to all other D&V bugs doing the rounds

Was awful wouldn't wish it on anyone.

[lljkk]

How do you know it was norovirus & not another vomiting bug? Was it cultured in a lab, Random? Or are the tummy cramps diagnostic?

[RandomMess]

MIL caught it from holiday camp where it swept through, she came down with it 2 days after getting back, we got it 2 days later (having seen her inbetween time) we all had the same symptoms so very very very unlikely to have been some different.

MIL has never been so ill with D&V in her life - there were many people (the vulnerable) hospitalised at the holiday camp at first they though it was food poisoning but noro was confirmed.

Urgh it was hideous.

[Glitterknickaz]

Two out of five of us have had it

[Discolite]

Re: mobile phones - when we culture bacteria at my school I get the children to swab their mobiles. The results are pretty horrible and that's just bacteria!

As for Norovirus, like others have said it's down to hand washing, not touching your mouth, nose or eyes when out and about and keeping infected people isolated. I've had enteric viruses twice and as I cleaned all areas thoroughly and kept people away from me they didn't catch it.

I got Norovirus on Christmas Eve 4 years ago. That was fun

[Acekicker]

It's not always a matter of time, some people have a non-function version of the FUT2 gene which makes them immune to most norovirus strains (but more likely to get e-coli and flu).

Yep, I have the non-function version, when we found out DH declared that if DS ever gets norovirus (he and DH don't have the function version) he will go stay in a hotel and I can be the nurse .

[ChristmasPickles]

Me again, sorry am worried as half our village seems to be down with this - I just wondered about hand towels, what's the best thing to do - change them daily?

[EdithWeston]

Wear gloves when you go out. It means anything you touch won't be getting on you skin, and with gloves on, you're less likely to be putting your fingers in your mouth etc.

[ElectricSoftParade]

Both DCs have been off school, on and off, for the past three weeks after catching some D&V bug. It has lingered and, possibly because they are already a weak, they have caught either the same thing again or another one. At one point 40% of the DCs at school were off.

Luckily, DH and I have not caught it (yet) but when DS was in hospital as a baby, the noro virus swept through the wards and we caught it then. I can honestly say I have never, ever felt so ill. It tooks at least 2 weeks before I felt relatively normal again.

All the best to those with it and hope you avoid it to all others.

[Viviennemary]

Every year they try and terrify the life out of us with the latest killer disease that is going to wipe out half the population. Swine flu, bird flu, MRSA. I am just not listening any more. Hands over ears.

[Stormfromeast]

Wash hands, and wash them properly.

[colleysmill]

Well happily I don't think mine was noro :) as I am sooo much better today so just plain old winter d and v!

[OhYouMerryLittleKitten]

But the most common winter d&v bug is noro.

See nhs page

It differs in severity for people cos there is more than one noro strain just like there is more than one cold strain. Plus different people react differently.

[TunipTheVegedude]

I don't remember winter vomiting virus being around when I was a kid in the 70s. Was it? There were plenty of bugs but it wasn't something you associated with the winter particularly - in the winter people just had lots of colds.