1

Campylobacter Jejuni

Maddison Vang

Family Studies, Cameron Heights Collegiate Institute

HFA4UI: Nutrition and Health

Ms. Smith

Date: Friday, September, 10. 2021

 2

Campylobacter Jejuni

Campylobacter Jejuni is a bacteria found in cattle, poultry, swine, wild birds, rodents and

household pets in the intestine. Campylobacter Jejuni has been found in some untreated surface

water, due to the matters with the environments with fecal and manure (Canada Government,

2021). Humans are most likely to become infected from Campylobacter from eating

contaminated foods, chicken that is undercooked and unprepared meats. The bacterial disease is

one of the most common foodborne illnesses (Harvard Health, 2019).

Food Sources

Campylobacter can contaminate food and water. Cows, turkey, chickens and other

animals can carry Campylobacter, although they may not show any symptoms or signs,

campylobacter is found in the liver, intestines and other organs of animals. From this, it can be

transferred to parts that are edible. A test from the National Antimicrobial Resistance Monitoring

System (NARMS) found that 24% of the bacteria Campylobacter was on raw chicken. When

cows udders have Campylobacter it causes milk to be contaminated or the contamination of

manure creates milk to be unsafe to drink. Soil or water that contain feces from animals can

contaminate lakes and streams, which causes the washing of fruit and vegetables to be

contaminated with Campylobacter (CDC, 2019).

Side Effects

Short Term Effects

 3

Symptoms of the disease occur 2-5 days after infection and can sometimes range from 1-

10 days. Campylobacter infections can cause diarrhea, bloody diarrhea, abdominal pain, fever,

headache, nausea/vomiting. People with infection mostly recover within a week, although there

can still be some bacteria in their stool after recovery (Canada Government, 2019). People who

do not show signs of the bacteria can be asymptomatic and pass the disease onto others (Ontario

Health, 2020)

Long Term Effects

Although the long term effects of Campylobacter bacteria are less likely to occur with

health problems. An estimated study says that 5-20% with infection have irritable bowel

syndrome only for a certain period of time, and around 1-5% have arthritis. Campylobacter

infections can develop to Guillain-Barrè Syndrome (GBS). Around 1000 cases have been

reported that Campylobacter leads to GBS. Guillain-Barrè Syndrome causes muscle weakness,

and potentially paralysis (CDC, 2019).

Treatment and Prevention

To prevent from Campylobacter bacteria, wash your hands well, cook and prepare meat

thoroughly, separate meats raw and ready, use separate cutting boards and making sure it’s well

cleaned, sanitize all utensils, cutting boards and counters, don’t drink raw milk, avoid

swallowing water from pools, lakes or rivers (Ontario Health, 2020). Try to avoid food and milk
 4

that are unpasteurized, make sure to cook your foods at the right temperatures, store foods at the

right temperature (Minnesota Department Of Health, 2019).

People with Campylobacter infection mostly recover without an antibiotic treatment. To

treat Campylobacter, patients should consume lots of fluids. For those who have a

Campylobacter infection but at a more severe rate will likely need antibiotic treatment. In

general those specifically at a higher risk are pregnant women, 65 years old or older, people with

a weakened immune system, a blood disorder, has AIDS, and those who are treated with

chemotherapy. Healthcare workers determine which antibiotics are needed to help fight the

infection (CDC, 2019), (Cleveland Clinic, 2021).

 5

Outbreaks

In British Columbia, June 2007, was one of many largest outbreaks of

Campylobacteriosis. It was a mountain bike race that had taken place in muddy conditions,

where 225 racers of the 537 reported having diarrheal illness, that's nearly 42% that have been

affected with the infection. The contamination of the mud was the factor of the outbreak for the

racers. The infection is usually spread through ingestion; it was reported that bears, chickens,

horses and dogs were on trials prior to the race, most people who are infected are in contact with

animal waste or the consumption of food and water (Healio, 2008). (National Library Of

Medicine, 2010). Back in 2009, in Greek island there was an outbreak of the Campylobacter

Jejuni. This was from the consumption of tap water being contaminated with Campylobacter.

The rural areas were affected the most as their drinking supply was in a high area of the risk

factor (National Library Of Medicine, 2010).

References

About the Minnesota Department of health - Minnesota Dept. of health. Minnesota

Department of Health. (n.d.). Retrieved September 13, 2021, from
https://www.health.state.mn.us/about/index.html.
 6

Campylobacteriosis. Harvard Health. (2019, January 2). Retrieved September 13, 2021,
from https://www.health.harvard.edu/a_to_z/campylobacteriosis-a-to-z.

Campylobacter infection: Causes, symptoms, management, prevention. Cleveland Clinic.

(n.d.). Retrieved September 13, 2021, from https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/diseases/15251-
campylobacter-infection.

Campylobacter outbreak among mountain bikers linked to mud. Healio. (n.d.). Retrieved
September 13, 2021, from
https://www.healio.com/news/infectious-disease/20120225/campylobacter-outbreak-
among-mountain-bikers-linked-to-mud.

Canada, P. H. A. of. (2021, January 18). Government of Canada. Canada.ca. Retrieved

September 13, 2021, from
https://www.canada.ca/en/public-health/services/food-poisoning/campylobacter-jejuni.html

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2019, December 23). Campylobacter.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Retrieved September 13, 2021, from
https://www.cdc.gov/campylobacter/faq.html.

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2019, December 23). Diagnosis and
treatment. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Retrieved September 13, 2021, from
https://www.cdc.gov/campylobacter/diagnosis.html.

Karagiannis I;Sideroglou T;Gkolfinopoulou K;Tsouri A;Lampousaki D;Velonakis

EN;Scoulica EV;Mellou K;Panagiotopoulos T;Bonovas S; (n.d.). A waterborne Campylobacter
jejuni outbreak on a Greek island. Epidemiology and infection. Retrieved September 13, 2021,
from https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/20836911/.

Monica Smith, M. S. U. E. (2018, October 2). The serious and long-term effects of
foodborne illness. MSU Extension. Retrieved September 13, 2021, from
https://www.canr.msu.edu/news/the_serious_and_long-term_effects_of_foodborne_illness.

Stuart TL;Sandhu J;Stirling R;Corder J;Ellis A;Misa P;Goh S;Wong B;Martiquet

P;Hoang L;Galanis E; (n.d.). Campylobacteriosis outbreak associated with ingestion of mud
during a mountain bike race. Epidemiology and infection. Retrieved September 13, 2021, from
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/20334726/.
7