Hepatitis B virus is found in body and body fluids. Mother to child is the most common mode of transmission with about 95% babies getting it at birth from an infected mother or within the first five years of birth through the child-to-child mode, also referred to as the HORIZONTAL TRANSMISSION.
Other ways of transmitting include sharing of sharp instruments, sexual contacts with an infected person and blood transfusion.
However the mother can’t infect the baby through breastfeeding because there is low concentration of the virus in breast milk, as well as in sweat, urine and saliva.
Also touching or shaking hands of an infected person can’t spread the virus, so it isn’t good to discriminate people infected with the Hepatitis B virus.