bacteria

• Most bacteria don't have anything to do with humans, and the ones that do actually help us
• There are trillions of bacteria in your intestines right now helping you break down your dinner
• In this video, we're going to focus on the few bad bacteria that infect humans and cause disease
• Bacteria


  Single-celled organisms about 100 times smaller than our own cells
• Bacteria can replicate rapidly within our bodies because of the good food supply
• Bacteria may produce toxins


  Which make us feel ill by damaging our cells and tissues
• Salmonella bacteria


  • Causes food poisoning
  • Can be caught from any food contaminated with the bacteria, most often by eating chicken that caught the disease
• In the UK, most chickens have to be vaccinated against salmonella, so it's relatively rare
• Symptoms of salmonella


  • Fever
  • Stomach cramps
  • Vomiting
  • Diarrhea
• Salmonella generally passes by itself within a week, and people just need to stay well hydrated and have a sick bowl close by
• Gonorrhea


  • A sexually transmitted disease (STD)
  • Passed on through sexual contact, e.g. unprotected sex
• Symptoms of gonorrhea


  • Pain when urinating
  • Thick yellow-green discharge from the vagina or penis
• Prevention of STDs


  Avoiding unsafe sex and using barrier methods of contraception like condoms
• Treatment of gonorrhea


  Used to be cured with common antibiotic penicillin, but now many strains are resistant so rarer and more expensive antibiotics are used