After the flu had many places declaring a State of Emergency, a new stomach virus is causing alarm and INSIDE EDITION has the details on how to prevent it.
It's being called the monster stomach virus, and it's hitting the United States with ferocious force.
Dr. Richard Besser said on Good Morning America, "This is one of the most contagious virus' we deal with."
All over YouTube, people are sharing their pain.
This it is a particularly nasty strain of the norovirus which usually has outbreaks on cruise ships and in hospitals. It got it's start in Australia, where it got it's name "The Sydney Strain," before sweeping the globe and setting it's sights on the U.S. It's getting a lot of attention because so many people are suffering.
E.R. Dr. Travis Stork of the television show The Doctors says you don't want to mess with this one. It comes on without any warning and hits you like a ton of bricks.
Dr. Stork said, "Diseases can really spread in the winter months and impact schools, workplaces, very quickly. You can be fine one minute and then a few hours later you have profuse vomiting and diarrhea."
And get this, Dr. Stork says he hasn't gotten sick in years, simply by taking these steps.
"Good hygiene. Washing your hands, not touching your face, your eyes, your nose, your mouth if your hands are dirty. That is how this virus or whatever virus you are talking about spreads," he said.
So what do you do if you get it?
Sadly, you just have to ride it out. The most effective treatment other than resting and staying hydrated by drinking lots of fluids. It usually last from between two and four days.
Dr. Stork said, "I was my hands, don't touch my face, I keep a little bit of distance from someone coughing on me, you can really cut down the number of viruses you get each year."
