Parasitic and Enteric Bacterial Infections among Food Handlers in Tourist-area Restaurants and Educational-institution Cafeterias, Sai-Yok District, Kanchanaburi Province, Thailand

his study aimed to determine the health status of food handlers working in the cafeterias of educational institutions, and those working in the restaurants of a tourist area in Sai-Yok District, Kanchanaburi Province, Thailand. A total of 273 stool samples were collected: 29.3% (80/273) from food handlers in the educational institutions, and 70.7% (193/273) from food handlers in touristarea restaurants. In all, 266 (97.4%) participants agreed to complete the study questionnaire. The stool samples collected were examined by direct smear and Kato-Katz modified thick-smear, and cultured for bacterial infections by agar plate method. The prevalence of intestinal parasites was 10.3% (28/273). Among these, hookworm was the most common (70.0%), followed by Entamoeba coli (10.0%), Trichuris trichiura (10.0%), Blastocystis hominis (3.3%), Giardia lamblia (3.3%), and Endolimax nana (3.3%). All stool cultures tested negative for enteropathogenic bacteria. Helminth infections were less prevalent among the food handlers from the educational institutions. A medical check-up program with health education could improve workers’ health status.