I live in the united states, is salmonella common?

40,000: Is the number of salmonella cases reported to the cdc each year. It is estimated that 30 times that is the actual number of cases, since most of them are mild and go unreported.

Yes: Salmonella is spread by food or water contaminated by human or animal feces of an infected or colonized animal. Failure to wash hands after touching contaminated meat products or failing to cook contaminated meat adequately allows this fecal oral route to succeed. In the us the incidence rate of salmonella has doubled in the last 20 years with 1.4 million cases occurring each year.