PEOPLE are aware about how typhoid is spread but still go on with their unhygienic practices, says the Ministry of Health.
National adviser communicable disease Dr Mike Kama said this was one of the issues in regards to the public's lack of concern on typhoid.
He said they found people also did not understand that bacteria were present under their fingernails even though their hands might look clean.
"People cannot correlate that even though their hands look clean, their hands can still harbour the typhoid bacteria which are usually hidden underneath their fingernails," Dr Kama said.
"They are still able to transmit typhoid to other people if they do not wash their hands properly with soap and water."
Dr Kama said they found that iTaukei Fijians were usually more susceptible to typhoid than any other race.
"To some extent, especially in areas where there are current typhoid cases, the Fijians of Indian and other descent are usually the ones who heed our advice.
"But the iTaukei are those who are hard to convince and the ones who are mostly affected by typhoid due to their unsanitary hygiene practices."
The Ministry of Health confirmed that typhoid was prevalent in Wailoku, which it added did not constitute as an outbreak at this stage.