300x600
This is how you recognise food poisoning
Nausea, stomach cramps and a forehead covered in sweat. Each year, around 48 million people get sick as a result of food poisoning in the USA alone. This is usually caused by eating food that has been contaminated with bacteria or mould. You can feel pretty miserable as a result of this. Yet a lot of people don’t immediately realise they’ve got a bout of food poisoning. You can recognise it by these 7 signals.
You can feel pretty miserable when you have food poisoning.
1. Sweating
Contrary to popular belief, food poisoning doesn’t start with taking a sprint to the toilet. One of the first symptoms is sweating. Do you break out in a sweat and are you developing a fever? Try to think back to whether you might have eaten something suspicious over the past few days. Food poisoning is easily confused with the flu.
2. Gas
Stomach cramps and gas are an indication of food poisoning. Often they are accompanied by multiple visits to the toilet. This is a sign that there are active bacteria in your stomach.
3. Nausea and vomiting
Nausea and vomiting are two of the most well-known and common symptoms of food poisoning. However, how soon these symptoms appear depends on the type of bacteria the food in question was contaminated with. The Listeria bacteria, for example, which is mostly found in products like hummus, milk and soft cheeses, can cause symptoms anywhere from three to 70 days after you’ve been exposed to the contaminated food. With salmonella, however, which occurs in eggs, meat and raw vegetables, the symptoms will start after 12 to 72 hours after exposure.
4. Diarrhoea
Diarrhoea is a very common symptom of food poisoning, but how do you know whether your diarrhoea is caused by that or by the flu? You can deduce it by looking at the type of diarrhoea you have. If you have the flu, you’ll have watery diarrhoea. When you have food poisoning, however, you can have bloody diarrhoea. This is caused by the E.coli and Campylobacter bacteria, which are often the culprit when it comes to food poisoning.
5. Fever
Some types of bacteria, like Listeria and Campylobacter, can cause a fever. This is usually accompanied by digestive problems. When the fever lasts for more than 48 hours, you should probably contact a doctor.
6. Confusion
When you’re feeling a bit confused and can’t seem to think clearly, you might very well have food poisoning. Listeria can cause this symptom, but it can take up to two months until the confusion begins. Your body feeling weak or your neck feeling stiff can also be signs of food poisoning. Seek help from a doctor if these problems don’t go away or if you don’t trust it.
7. Dehydration
When you suspect you might have food poisoning and you’ve got multiple symptoms that make it seem that way, the first thing you need to do is make sure you hydrate properly. Try to drink a lot of water and avoid sugary drinks or drinks that contain caffeine or alcohol; these have dehydrating properties. Besides this, you should eat small portions of mild food like bananas, white rice or bread.
Look out for these food products
You can get food poisoning from pretty much any type of food, but in most cases, it’s caused by raw meat, raw fruit and veggies that haven’t been washed properly, milk or products that have been sitting outside of the fridge for too long.
Nausea, stomach cramps and a forehead covered in sweat. Each year, around 48 million people get sick as a result of food poisoning in the USA alone. This is usually caused by eating food that has been contaminated with bacteria or mould. You can feel pretty miserable as a result of this. Yet a lot of people don’t immediately realise they’ve got a bout of food poisoning. You can recognise it by these 7 signals.
You can feel pretty miserable when you have food poisoning.
1. Sweating
Contrary to popular belief, food poisoning doesn’t start with taking a sprint to the toilet. One of the first symptoms is sweating. Do you break out in a sweat and are you developing a fever? Try to think back to whether you might have eaten something suspicious over the past few days. Food poisoning is easily confused with the flu.
2. Gas
Stomach cramps and gas are an indication of food poisoning. Often they are accompanied by multiple visits to the toilet. This is a sign that there are active bacteria in your stomach.
3. Nausea and vomiting
Nausea and vomiting are two of the most well-known and common symptoms of food poisoning. However, how soon these symptoms appear depends on the type of bacteria the food in question was contaminated with. The Listeria bacteria, for example, which is mostly found in products like hummus, milk and soft cheeses, can cause symptoms anywhere from three to 70 days after you’ve been exposed to the contaminated food. With salmonella, however, which occurs in eggs, meat and raw vegetables, the symptoms will start after 12 to 72 hours after exposure.
4. Diarrhoea
Diarrhoea is a very common symptom of food poisoning, but how do you know whether your diarrhoea is caused by that or by the flu? You can deduce it by looking at the type of diarrhoea you have. If you have the flu, you’ll have watery diarrhoea. When you have food poisoning, however, you can have bloody diarrhoea. This is caused by the E.coli and Campylobacter bacteria, which are often the culprit when it comes to food poisoning.
5. Fever
Some types of bacteria, like Listeria and Campylobacter, can cause a fever. This is usually accompanied by digestive problems. When the fever lasts for more than 48 hours, you should probably contact a doctor.
6. Confusion
When you’re feeling a bit confused and can’t seem to think clearly, you might very well have food poisoning. Listeria can cause this symptom, but it can take up to two months until the confusion begins. Your body feeling weak or your neck feeling stiff can also be signs of food poisoning. Seek help from a doctor if these problems don’t go away or if you don’t trust it.
7. Dehydration
When you suspect you might have food poisoning and you’ve got multiple symptoms that make it seem that way, the first thing you need to do is make sure you hydrate properly. Try to drink a lot of water and avoid sugary drinks or drinks that contain caffeine or alcohol; these have dehydrating properties. Besides this, you should eat small portions of mild food like bananas, white rice or bread.
Look out for these food products
You can get food poisoning from pretty much any type of food, but in most cases, it’s caused by raw meat, raw fruit and veggies that haven’t been washed properly, milk or products that have been sitting outside of the fridge for too long.
