First Aid: Food Borne Illness

By Matt Unangst, 25 Feb 14:34

All foods have the potential to cause food-borne illness because all foods contain bacteria. Improper handling, cooking, or storage of food can cause bacteria to multiply into numbers that cause illness.

Food can also be contaminated by parasites, viruses, chemicals, and other toxins; but the majority of food-borne illnesses are caused by bacteria.

Different sources of food-borne illness produce different symptoms. The most typical symptoms you will experience are diarrhea, nausea, abdominal pain, and vomiting. These normally occur within a few hours of consuming the food that caused the illness.

Some groups are at higher risk for food-borne illness. Seniors have weaker immune systems and are thus under greater threat from any illness. The same goes for small children and infants, as well as people with chronic diseases that lower the strength of their immune systems. Members of any of these groups should get emergency medical attention if they experience food-borne illness.

Immune system strength is not the only factor in the severity of food-borne illness: the type of organism doing the infecting and the amount consumed are also important factors.
If you develop food poisoning, don’t take anti-diarrheal medications, as they can impede your body from fully eliminating the bacteria from your body. Instead, rest and drink plenty of fluids to prevent dehydration.
Most food-borne illnesses improve within 48 hours with no further treatment, but if your illness lasts longer, call a doctor.
Emergency medical care should be sought if your symptoms are especially severe. One severe symptom is bloody stool. You should also get emergency attention if you suspect that you might have botulism poisoning. Botulism occurs most commonly in home-canned foods, especially tomatoes and green beans. Botulism symptoms normally appear between 12 and 36 hours of ingestion and may include headache, blurred vision, muscle weakness, and paralysis. These may be accompanied by nausea, vomiting, constipation, urinary retention, difficulty, breathing, and dry mouth. Botulism can be fatal, so get attention immediately.

Tags: first aid, food poisoning, food-borne illness, botulism