Food poisoning is caused by eating contaminated food, where infectious organisms or toxins enter food during processing, production, or home handling. Common causes are viruses like norovirus or bacteria like Salmonella, E. coli, and Campylobacter. Symptoms include nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, abdominal pain and cramps, fever, and loss of appetite. First aid involves rest, oral rehydration, and light bland foods to avoid dehydration until symptoms subside, usually within a few days. Seek medical advice for prolonged or severe symptoms.

1. FOOD POISONING
Food poisoning is an illness caused by eating contaminated food. It’s not usually
serious and usually most people get better within a few days without any
treatment. Infectious organisms or their toxins can contaminate food at any point
of processing or production. Contamination can also occur at home if food is
incorrectly handled or cooked.
CAUSES OF FOOD POISONING
Viruses and bacteria
Viruses are the most frequent cause of food poisoning. The next highest causes
are bacteria. About 31 viraland bacterial pathogens are responsiblefor almost 9.4
million diagnosed food poisoning illnesses per year; about 39 million food
poisoning cases are unspecified (undiagnosed). Yearly, about 128,000 people are
hospitalized and about 3,000 die from all causes of food poisoning.
The most common pathogens that caused hospitalizations due to contamination
of foods or fluids are:
1. Salmonella
2. Norovirus
3. Campylobacter
4. Escherichia coli (E. coli)
Infectious agents comprise the largest category of food poisoning, but a viral
infections comprise the bulk of infected patients but are far less likely to cause
hospitalizations and deaths than Salmonella bacteria. Because the bulk of
"unspecified" causes is probably similar to the make up of the diagnosed causes,
this grouping of viruses and bacteria is considered to be the main causes of food
poisoning .
Toxins
There are many toxins that can cause food poisoning. Some are produced by
bacteria on or in food and others are produced by plants and animals/fish or

2. other organisms that are ingested. There are many plants and animals/fish that
can be poisonous under certain conditions but they are encountered infrequently
or under special conditions. Even though there are many bacterial, plant, and
other toxins that can be ingested with food and water, they are usually limited to
relatively small outbreaks.
Parasites
Most parasites areingested with contaminated food or water. Some of the
parasites ingested include:
 Giardia
 Amoeba
 Trichinella
 Taenia solium
Chemicals
Certain chemicals are considered toxins that can cause food poisoning. Although
there are over 80,000 chemicals used in the world .Only a few have been well
studied. While most do not enter into foods, some do and cause food poisoning.
An example of such a chemical is mercury, found in drinking water and in fish
such as tuna and marlin. Other examples of chemicals that can be toxic if enough
contaminates food and water are pesticides, polychlorinated biphenyls, and lead.
The causes of food and water poisoning are numerous. This brief listing of causes
should suffice as a framework to begin more detailed studies of food poisoning.

3. SYMPTOMS
Food poisoning symptoms vary with the sourceof contamination. Most types of
food poisoning cause one or moreof the following signs and symptoms:
 Nausea
 Vomiting
 Watery diarrhea
 Abdominal pain and cramps
 Fever
 Stomach crams
 Loss of appetite
 Muscle pain
FIRST AID TREATMENT:
First aid is the immediate treatment or care given to someone suffering from an
injury or illness until more advanced care is accessed or they recover. The aims of
first aid are to: preserve life, prevent illness or injury from becoming worse.
A. To control Nausea and Vomiting.
1. Avoid solid foods until vomiting ends. Then eat light, bland foods, such as
saltine crackers, bananas, rice, or bread.
2. Sipping liquids may help avoid vomiting.
3. Don’t eat fried, greasy, spicy, or sweet foods.
4. Don’t take anti-nausea or anti-diarrhea medication without asking your doctor.
B. To prevent Dehydration
1. Drink clear fluids, starting with small sips and gradually drinking more.

4. 2.If vomiting and diarrhea last more than 24 hours, drink an oral rehydration
solution.
3.Treatment for food poisoning may include-
• Make sureyou drink lots of water or fluids to keep your body hydrated, and
take proper rest.
• Take a glass of warmwater, add a few drops of lemon juice and a pinch of
sugar and salt to it, stir well and drink.
• Eat light, bland foods such as crackers, bread, plain rice or bananas.
• Take a tablespoon of honey with a few drops of ginger juice to reduce
inflammation.
Steps to avoid food poisoning
• Avoid unpasteurized milk or milk products.
• Check the expiry date before buying any food items or products. Don’teat food
products after the expiry date mentioned on the label.
• Do not eat raw/very lightly cooked ground beef, chicken, eggs or fish.
• Keep away foods that have an unusualodor or spoiled taste.
• Do not thaw foods at the roomtemperature.
• While storing food in the refrigerator, keep raw food, such as meat and poultry
separate fromcooked foods to prevent cross-contamination.

5. When to seek medical advice-
Most cases of food poisoning do not require medical attention. But contact if you
have any of the following :
-vomiting that lasts for more than two days
-you cannot keep liquids down for more than a day
-diarrhea that lasts for more than three days
-blood in your vomit
-blood in your stools
-changes in mental state, such as confusion
-double vision
-slurred speech
-signs that you may be dehydrated, such as a dry mouth, sunken eyes and being
unable to pass urine.