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.. The symptoms like vomiting, diarrhea and nausea are generally attributed to the food poisoning.

The presence of poisonous substances like bacteria, fungus or toxins in the food will result food poisoning symptoms. 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

Whenever you were affected with food poisoning, generally doctor will first diagonise for the symptoms like upset stomach, diarrhea, fever, vomiting, abdominal cramps and dehydration, to more severe illness such as paralysis and meningitis. The confirmation test for food poisoning is testing the stool which finalizes whether the person is suffering from food poisoning?.

Most food poisoning effects (symptoms) on body clear up in a few days on its own. It should not be neglected if food poisoning illness is continued for more days and immediately medical attention should be given. The probability of food poison is more for children, elders, pregnant women and persons who use antacids heavily .
Causes

Consumption of contaminated food is the main source for food poisoning to an individual. These agents can include toxins, bacteria, viruses, or parasites. All contaminants are not food poisoning agents and there are more than 250 agents that causes food poisoning. No doubt the most populated bacteria is the prime agent for food poisoning. The most prevalent types of food-borne bacteria are E. coli, Listeria, Salmonella, Bacillus cereus, Campylobacter, and Shigella. The symptoms from consumption of food poisoned by bacteria appear only after 12 to 72 hours of consumption.

Poor sanitation or preparation leads to food contamination. If food handlers are not properly cleaning their hands after using toilets will certainly contaminate food. Improperly packaged food stored at the wrong temperature also promotes contamination.

Treatment

It is practically proved that without any treatment the symptoms of food poisoning disappear shortly. If symptoms are severe or persist for more than 3-4 days, talk to your doctor. But in the case of children and aged persons medical attention must be sought immediately. 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. Appropriate antibiotics are used depends upon the poisonous bacteria present in the food. 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 signs of food poisoning go to foodpoisoning.com.