What is
Staphylococcus aureus?
what is MRSA?

Staphylococcus aureus (Staph) is a common bacterium found on the skin and in the noses of up to 25% of healthy people and animals. Most of the time, staph does not cause any harm; however, sometimes staph causes infections. Staph has the ability to make toxins that can cause food poisoning. Staph infections are caused by different types of staph germs. 

Although methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) is often better known, methicillin resistance does not increase the pathogenicity of the bacteria. Any staph infection can be dangerous even if it is not resistant to antibiotics. MRSA refers to bacterial strains that differ from other S. aureus strains only in their resistance to antibiotics. 

2013 CDC/ Antibiotic Resistance Coordination and Strategy Unit/Illustrator: Jennifer Oosthuizenn

what is staph food poisoning?

Staph food poisoning is a gastrointestinal illness caused by eating foods contaminated with toxins produced by Staphylococcus aureus.

The most common way for food to be contaminated with Staph is through contact with food workers who carry the bacteria, or through contaminated milk and cheeses. 


Foods at highest risk of contamination with Staph and subsequent toxin production are those that are made by hand and require no cooking.

Some examples of foods that have caused staph food poisoning are sliced meat, puddings, some pastries and sandwiches.

how do people get staph food poisoning?

People who carry staph can contaminate food if they don’t wash their hands before touching it.


Foods that are not cooked after handling are especially risky if contaminated with staph.

Food contaminated with staph toxin may not smell bad or look spoiled.

What are the symptoms
of staph food poisoning?

  • Symptoms usually develop within 30 minutes to 8 hours after eating or drinking an item containing staph toxin, and last no longer than 1 day. Severe illness is rare.
  • The illness cannot be passed from one person to another.

You can suspect staph food poisoning based on the type of symptoms and their fast resolution. Although laboratory tests can detect toxin-producing staph in stool, vomit, and foods, these tests are usually not ordered except during an outbreak.

If you think you might have staph food poisoning and are experiencing severe symptoms, contact your healthcare provider.

4 steps to reduce your risk of MRSA infection:
Maintain good hand and body hygiene.
Clean your body regularly, especially after exercise.
Avoid sharing items such as towels and razors.

How is staph food poisoning treated?

The most important treatment is drinking plenty of fluids and getting rest. Your healthcare provider may give you medicine to decrease vomiting and nausea. People with severe illness may require intravenous fluids.


who gets has the greatest risk of a staph infection?


In healthcare facilities, the risk of more serious staph infection is higher because many patients have weakened immune systems or have undergone procedures.

The risk of more serious staph infection is higher for patients in intensive care units (ICUs), and patients with medical devices inserted in their bodies.

How can I prevent staph food poisoning?

The best way to avoid food poisoning by staph is to prevent food from being held at an unsafe temperature (between 40°F and 140°F) for more than 2 hours.


Remember to always follow these food safety tips:

  • Use a food thermometer and cook foods to their safe minimum internal temperature.
  • Keep kitchens and food-serving areas clean and sanitized.


  • Wash your hands and under your fingernails for 20 seconds with soap and water before, during, and after preparing food, and before eating.
  • Do not prepare food if you are ill with diarrhea or vomiting.
  • Wear gloves while preparing food if you have wounds or infections on your hands or forearms.

what are the symptoms
of a mrsa infection?

The symptoms of a MRSA infection depend on the part of the body that is infected. For example, people with MRSA skin infections often can get swelling, warmth, redness, and pain in infected skin.

In most cases it is hard to tell if an infection is due to MRSA or another type of bacteria without laboratory tests that your doctor can order. Some MRSA skin infections can have a fairly typical appearance and can be confused with a spider bite. However, unless you actually see the spider, the irritation is likely not a spider bite.

Most S. aureus skin infections, including MRSA, appear as a bump or infected area on the skin that might be:

  • red
  • swollen
  • painful
  • warm to the touch
  • full of pus or other drainage
  • accompanied by a fever

who can get infected with MRSA?

Anyone can get MRSA.

The risk increases with activities or places that involve crowding, skin-to-skin contact, and shared equipment or supplies.

Some of the people who carry MRSA can go on to get a MRSA infection. Non-intact skin, such as when there are abrasions or incisions, is often the site of an MRSA infection.

Athletes, daycare and school students, military personnel in barracks, and those who receive inpatient medical care or have surgery or medical devices inserted in their body are at higher risk of MRSA infection.

what if i see these symptoms?

You cannot tell by looking at the skin if it’s a staph infection (including MRSA).

Getting medical care early makes it less likely that the infection will become serious.


  • Contact your healthcare provider, especially if the symptoms are accompanied by a fever.
  • Do not pick at or pop the sore.
  • Cover the area with clean, dry bandages until you can see a healthcare provider.
  • Clean your hands often.

how is mrsa spread?


The opioid epidemic may also be connected to the rise of staph infections in communities. People who inject drugs are 16 times more likely to develop a serious staph infection.

How do I prevent the spread of mrsa?


  • Cover your wounds with clean, dry bandages until healed.
  • Do not pick at or pop the sore.
  • Throw away bandages and tape with the regular trash.
  • Clean your hands often.
  • after changing a bandage
  • after touching an infected wound
  • after touching dirty clothes
check out more from the CDC