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" No, I really didn&amp;#x27;t enjoy using the word &amp;quot;diarrhea&amp;quot; in the headline (eww, I know), but hey, there was no other option. Have you heard of a bug called Clostridium difficile, known as C. diff? It&amp;#x27;s been a thorn in the nation&amp;#x27;s hospitals&amp;#x27; sides for years, but now researchers are concerned that the bug is on the rise and spreading. Read on to get the details and learn how to protect yourself ...**** Sometimes when I read about germs and viruses--especially the antibiotic resistant strains--I start to feel a little panicky. I quickly think of my Lysol can--and where I&amp;#x27;ve been and what I&amp;#x27;ve touched. You? But, the first thing for me--and everyone else--to remember when it comes to germ prevention is to chill out. Bugs are everywhere and getting anxious about them isn&amp;#x27;t going to do you, or me, a bit of good. So, let&amp;#x27;s break this down. The news, according to MSNBC&amp;#x27;s health writer, JoNel Aleccia: &amp;quot;A virulent, drug-resistant gut infection that causes potentially deadly diarrhea, especially among the old and sick, is up to 20 times more common than previously thought, a large survey of U.S. hospitals and health care centers finds.&amp;quot; Who&amp;#x27;s getting it? People who have been in health care settings. Fortunately, if you&amp;#x27;re healthy and haven&amp;#x27;t been at the hospital much--you&amp;#x27;re probably in the clear. (Lovely I know: You go to the hospital and come home with deadly diarrhea!). More from MSNBC: &amp;quot;The study also confirms suspicions that most cases of C. diff are contracted in health care settings. More than 72 percent of the infections in the APIC study were considered to be hospital-acquired, and more than 54 percent were acquired less than 48 hours after admission, the survey showed.&amp;quot; So, take extra care to wash your hands when you&amp;#x27;re in a hospital setting--and that means when you visit people at the hospital too. (My husband works at a hospital, so you better believe we&amp;#x27;ll be doing our share of hand-scrubbing!) Here are some good germ-prevention tips from a past Vitamin G post. Does news like this make you step up your hand washing? Or are you pretty relaxed about germs in general? Photo: Getty"^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
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