Prevention

Many cases of diarrhea are spread from one child to another and to adults at home and in school and daycare centers. Take these personal care precautions:

• Adults caring for children in any setting should carefully wash their hands after changing diapers or helping children use the bathroom.
  
  
• Children should be instructed to wash their hands after using the bathroom.

Practice safe food-handling. Always wash your hands before and after handling food.

• Use care when preparing raw poultry or meat. Food should be cooked to recommended temperatures. Avoid raw or rare meat and poultry. Utensils coming in contact with raw food should be cleaned in soap and hot water.
  
  
• Fruits and vegetables consumed raw should be thoroughly rinsed in clean water.
  
  
• Unpasteurized (raw) milk may be contaminated with bacteria and should always be avoided. Unpasteurized fruit juice or cider should generally be avoided even if the source is known because the fruit may have come in contact with contaminated animal droppings in the orchard.
  
  
• Use caution when traveling, especially in foreign countries. Do not eat foods from street vendors. Don't drink water or drinks with ice cubes made from tap water if the country is deemed unsafe. Check the Travelers' Health Web site of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention for travel information for your destination.