Can you catch infection by someone’s sweat?

There are infections that are carried by sweat and can be caught if you get in contact with infected sweat. The following are the infections that you may/may not catch by getting in contact with someone's sweat.

Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus is a super bug that can cause hard-to-treat infections on different parts of the body. It is resistant to many of the commonly available antibiotics. It can cause sores and boils on the skin and can even cause infections in the bloodstream, lungs, or the urinary tract. It can easily spread through contact and so, one can easily catch it through someone who has it on his skin.

Though this remains debated, research has revealed that Hepatitis B virus can be transmitted through sweat in contact sports. Usually, it is believed that HBV is transmitted through open wounds and mucous membranes but a study on Olympic wrestlers pointed out that eleven per cent of the participants had virus components in sweat, similar to the levels found in blood. The study was published in British Journal of Sports Medicine.

Though sweat itself does not contain these viruses, it can get onto the skin through nose-rubbing, sneezing or breathing. If the sweat becomes a carrier of the virus, it can easily affect anybody who gets in touch with it.

Impetigo is a highly contagious skin infection that can spread through physical contact, such as through infected skin. It is very common among children and can lead to plaques, blisters or red patches on the skin. It is also caused by Staphylococcus aureus.

There is much debate whether an indirect means of transmission, like sweat, can transfer Herpes or not. Some studies suggest that a skin-to-skin contact can transmit HSV-1 and HSV-2 while others affirm that viral pathology needs sustained contact and friction for the transmission to occur.

All these three are infections that do NOT spread via casual contact like sweat, food, sneezing or coughing.

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