# Bacteria vs Virus which is deadlier

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bacteria-vs-virus-which-is-deadlier/814646>\
**Category:** In My Humble Opinion\
**Created:** [May 23, 2018, 1:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bacteria-vs-virus-which-is-deadlier/814646 "2018-05-23T01:05:54Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 4\
**Page:** 3

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**Author:** ![Broomstick](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/broomstick/32/246_2.png) [@Broomstick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Broomstick)\
**Post date:** [May 26, 2018, 3:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bacteria-vs-virus-which-is-deadlier/814646/41 "2018-05-26T03:47:39Z")

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Vaccines killed off smallpox - that alone makes them a win. In addition to all the other lives saved by vaccines.

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**Author:** ![dtilque](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d6d6ee/32.png) [@dtilque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dtilque)\
**Post date:** [May 26, 2018, 4:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bacteria-vs-virus-which-is-deadlier/814646/42 "2018-05-26T04:43:32Z")

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> [@Mama\_Zappa](#):
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> To whomever said viruses aren’t spread all that casually: tell my family. That dose of “food poisoning” I brought back after a weekend away last year spread to members who hadn’t even been in the same room as I was.

I understand food poisoning is usually caused by the norovirus, which seems to be one of the most contagious pathogens around. Not only that, but there’s several variants and immunity to one doesn’t give immunity to the others.

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**Author:** ![DSeid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dseid/32/20194_2.png) [@DSeid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DSeid)\
**Post date:** [May 26, 2018, 1:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bacteria-vs-virus-which-is-deadlier/814646/43 "2018-05-26T13:12:54Z")

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> [@Broomstick](#):
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> Vaccines killed off smallpox - that alone makes them a win. In addition to all the other lives saved by vaccines.

I _think_ so … smallpox alone killed [300 million](http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/british/empire_seapower/smallpox_01.shtml) in just the 20th century. But then Penicillin alone is estimated to have saved [200 million](https://www.wikitribune.com/story/2017/12/28/medicine/prognosis-for-penicillin/28091/), also same century. Not so sure it’s a _complete_ slam dunk.

Glad we have both, and clean water, etc.!

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**Author:** ![Mama\_Zappa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/71e660/32.png) [@Mama\_Zappa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mama_Zappa)\
**Post date:** [June 1, 2018, 11:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bacteria-vs-virus-which-is-deadlier/814646/44 "2018-06-01T23:36:28Z")

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> [@dtilque](#):
>
> I understand food poisoning is usually caused by the norovirus, which seems to be one of the most contagious pathogens around. Not only that, but there’s several variants and immunity to one doesn’t give immunity to the others.

Yeah - there are a number of groups of gut viruses that cause basically identical symptoms (first on the list, “praying for death”) but have different incubation periods. Noro has the shortest, so given how rapidly it attacked the family, that’s my suspicion.

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