Food Poisoning is one of the common illness affecting people as the foodborne disease is caused due to eating contaminated, toxic or spoiled food. The bad food may contain infectious agents like virus, parasite or bacteria. The toxic food may have an adverse effect on the gastrointestinal tract causing symptoms like diarrhea, vomiting, and nausea. People affected by food poisoning can experience some symptoms depending on the source of infection. The symptoms listed below can range from one hour to four weeks;
- Loss of Appetite
- Diarrhea
- Abdominal Cramps
- Fever
- Weakness
- Vomiting
- Headaches
- Nausea
The symptoms of persistent diarrhea, high fever, inability to speak, severe dehydration, bloody urine etc. can prove fatal to the people.
Reasons For Food Poisoning
Contamination of food is the major cause of food poisoning. The food items contain pathogens, but the heating of food (or cooking at high temperature) kills all the pathogens. But, in some cases, the food gets contaminated due to the following reasons;
1) Bacteria
It is the major cause of food poisoning as many cases reported around the world is attributed to the bacteria. The potentially lethal bacteria in the food are;
- E.coli
- Salmonella
- Listeria
2) Parasites
The food poisoning is also triggered by parasites, but it is not as common as the one caused by bacteria. Toxoplasma is the common type of parasite that spreads through food and affects the health of people. The parasite can live in the digestive tract of the human beings undetected for many years. It strikes when the immunity system is weakened causing severe side effects.
3) Viruses
Food poisoning is also instigated by viruses as many cases are reported around the world. The common viruses that cause issues are;
- Norwalk Virus (norovirus)
- Sapovirus
- Astrovirus
- Rotavirus
- Hepatitis A Virus
In some cases, the virus transmitted through can cause fatal damage to the people. People with weakened immune systems or have the auto-immune disease are at greater risk of having complications from the food poisoning.
Cure For Food Poisoning
The food poisoning resolves itself without getting treatment from a medical professional. The treatment at home usually focuses on reducing the symptoms. It will aid in reducing the complication due to dehydration. So, the main treatment plan adopted at home are;
- Drinking plenty of liquid with oral re-hydration salts to replace the loss of fluids or electrolytes from the body.
- Sipping small amounts of water to ensure good fluid intake even with persistent vomiting to ensure hydration. Allowing the ice cubes to melt in the mouth is also advisable to get sufficient hydration.
- Taking store-bought products like Gatorade and Pedialyte to restore the lost electrolytes from the body and enhance the hydration.
- Taking small amounts of bland food like rice, toast, bananas, cereal, etc.
- Avoid spicy foods, dairy products, alcohol, fatty foods, sugary foods, and caffeine.
Home Remedies
The home remedies are available for treating food poisoning to reduce the discomfort caused by the symptoms to offer relief.
- Apple Cider Vinegar
ACV has antibacterial properties that are effective for alleviating the symptoms of foodborne pathogenic bacteria.
- Oregano Oil
It has antimicrobial properties (like thymol and carvacrol) that can eliminate the pathogens causing the food poisoning.
- Ginger and Honey
Ginger and Honey have digestive and antimicrobial properties to relieve the symptoms of vomiting and nausea caused by the foodborne illness.
- Lemon Juice
It has impressive bactericidal activities that can fight the bacterial pathogens causing food poisoning.
Drug Treatment
Over the counter drug treatments are available to prevent the symptoms like diarrhea and vomiting.
- Antidiarrheal medication (like loperamide, Imotil, Imodium, etc.) can prevent the symptoms of diarrhea
- Anti-vomiting medications prescribed by the doctors (antiemetic) like metoclopramide and chlorpromazine can stop the vomiting.
Washing hands before eating, having properly cooked food, sanitizing the raw products, washing vegetables and fruits before consumption are some of the ways to avoid food
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