Risk factors for Giardiasis

A risk factor is something that increases your chance of getting a disease or condition.

• Age group: young children and elderly adults
• Unsanitary or crowded living conditions
• Drinking untreated water, such as:
  • Well water
  • Stream or lake water
• Low stomach acid, often found in:
  • Elderly people
  • People on ulcer drugs
• Oral-anal sex
• An impaired immune system
• Working or staying in a daycare center or nursing home
• International travelers
• Internationally adopted children, who may harbor more than one parasitic infection
• Hikers, campers, and swimmers