Food poisoning is a general term for health problems arising from eating contaminated food. There are different ways for food getting contaminated and they are by bacteria, viruses, environmental toxins or pesticides etc.. Nausea, vomiting and diarrhea are the common symptoms results out of food poisoning. Food poisoning is nothing but contamination of eating food with germs, bacteria or poisoneous toxins. Now a days food poisoning is very common as our vicinity is fully filled with bacteria. You may have had mild food poisoning - with diarrhea and an upset stomach - but your mom or dad just called it a stomach bug or stomach virus. Symptoms The symptoms of food poisoning range from upset stomach, diarrhea, fever, vomiting, abdominal cramps and dehydration, to more severe illness such as paralysis and meningitis. Even after noticing these symptoms, final confirmation is done by testing the stool. Most food poisoning effects (symptoms) on body clear up in a few days on its own. Sustained symptoms after few days warns to seek for medical advice. Pregnant women, children, elders are more susceptible for getting food poison . Causes Food poisoning occurs when an individual consumes food that has been contaminated by a poisoning agent. These agents can include toxins, bacteria, viruses, or parasites. There are more than 250 known agents that have the ability to cause food poisoning. Poisoning from a bacterial agent is a common occurrence. The most prevalent types of food-borne bacteria are E. coli, Listeria, Salmonella, Bacillus cereus, Campylobacter, and Shigella. Because bacteria needs time to multiply, the symptoms for bacterial food poisonings may not manifest until 12 to 72 hours after eating the contaminated food. Using unhygenic areas and utensils causes food contamination. If food handlers are not properly cleaning their hands after using toilets will certainly contaminate food. If food is stored in improper temperature, then the food will be spoiled due to bacterial or viral contamination. Treatment It is practically proved that without any treatment the symptoms of food poisoning disappear shortly. You need to consult a doctor only if the symptoms are persisting for more than 3-4 days. But this is not the case with all the persons, and an immediate attention should be given to elderly person or children. Keep a sample of any remaining food as well as a sample of the patient's feces, which can be tested for the presence of infectious microorganisms. If the cause is non-infectious, such as poisonous mushrooms, you may need to be treated urgently to eliminate the poison from your body. Treatment of food poisoning is usually aimed at preventing dehydration. In severe cases fluids and salts may be administered intravenously in hospital. Administration of antibiotics with respect to specific bacteria is essential to tackle the problem of food poisoning. Patients usually recover quite rapidly from an attack of food poisoning and rarely experience long lasting health consequences. In very rare cases, there is a risk of septicemia if bacteria spread into the blood stream. Both dehydration and septicemia can cause shock - a condition that is sometimes fatal. For more information on food poisoning types go to foodpoisoning.com.
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