Overview
Food poisoning is illness from eating food or water contaminated with bacteria, viruses, parasites or their toxins. Symptoms — vomiting, cramps, loose motions — usually start within hours to a day of the suspect meal and settle within one to three days with rest and fluids. The main job at home is preventing dehydration with ORS and light food; antibiotics are needed only in specific cases a doctor identifies.
Symptoms
- Nausea and vomiting
- Stomach cramps
- Loose motions, sometimes watery
- Fever and body ache in some cases
- Weakness and reduced urine if dehydration sets in
When to see a doctor
See a doctor if vomiting prevents keeping fluids down, symptoms last beyond two days, there is blood in stool or high fever, or the patient is a young child, elderly or pregnant.
Causes
Food left at room temperature, undercooked meat or eggs, unwashed produce, contaminated water or ice, and food handled with unclean hands — risks that rise sharply in summer and monsoon.