Review of diffusion models for the social amplification of risk of food-borne zoonoses

Health Organisation 1959). There is no homogeneity to the transmission of zoonoses: it can be via food (Salmonella), water (Cryptosporidium), insect vectors (Lyme disease) and direct contact (SARS). The health effects vary from fatal (163 deaths between 1995 and 2007 (National Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease Surveillance Unit 2008)) to self-limiting illnesses (in which the patient recovers without seeking treatment) such as diarrhoea and vomiting. Approximately three quarters of emerging pathogens are believed to be of zoonotic origin (Taylor et al., 2001). Schlundt et al., (2004) and Jensen et al., (2005) provide further technical information on zoonoses.