Am I having a bacterial or viral infection?

It is a fact that both bacteria and viruses cause infections in human beings. These two are micro-organisms and thus cannot be seen with the naked eye. Bacteria (or bacterium if just one) have so many shapes and forms and they have just a single cell structure. They can live in virtually any environment and thrive, even in and on the human body. Bacteria that cause infections are called pathogenic bacteria, and they are few.

Viruses are also very tiny micro-organisms, usually smaller than bacteria and they also exist in distinct shapes and forms, just like bacteria. Viruses, unlike bacteria, are parasites. They are parasites because they cannot live on their own but rather; they need to live on other living organisms to stay alive. Viruses are dangerous because some of them can live on, feed on, and even kill the host.

Bacterial infections can be transmitted from a person to the other just like viral infections can be transmitted from a person to the other. The modes of transmission are similar. Both bacterial and viral infections can be transmitted through touches, body fluid exchange, or even through pregnancy (mother to fetus transmission). Bacterial infections can also be contracted through a bite and even from contaminated surfaces or ingestion of contaminated food or water.

Bacterial infections include the likes of strep throat, urinary tract infection (UTI), bacterial food poisoning, gonorrhea, tuberculosis, bacterial meningitis, cellulitis, Lyme disease and tetanus and many more.

Viral infection includes influenza, common cold, viral gastroenteritis, chickenpox, measles, viral meningitis, warts, human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), viral hepatitis, Zika virus, West Nile virus and COVID-19, and even several others.

So is your infection viral or bacterial? You need to get tested by a professional to determine what is wrong with you and although bacterial infections may be mild and seldom kill; they are not to be treated lightly.