Food poisoning

What is it?
It's estimated there are more than 9 million cases of
gastroenteritis each year in England. For an increasing
number of people, it's due to food poisoning, something
that's preventable.
Gastroenteritis describes symptoms affecting digestion,
such as nausea, vomiting, diarrhoea and stomach pain.
Food poisoning is the type of gastroenteritis caused by
eating or drinking something contaminated with micro-
organisms or germs, or by toxic substances produced by
these germs.
These illnesses are often accompanied by fever, muscle
aches, shivering and feeling exhausted.
What causes it?
Micro-organisms enter the body in one of two ways:
In the food - the food isn't cooked thoroughly, so the
micro-organisms aren't killed off, often the case with
barbecued food.
On the food - the person preparing the food doesn't wash
their hands before handling the food, for example.
Campylobacter infection is the most common cause of
food poisoning seen by GPs. It likes to live in milk and
poultry.
Other common causes include salmonella, listeria,
shigella and clostridia. Some take a few hours to cause
symptoms, others a few days. Serious infections with
E.coli are, fortunately, uncommon.
How can I prevent it?
1. Always wash your hands thoroughly before preparing food,
after going to the toilet and after handling pets
2. Keep kitchen work surfaces clean
3. Make sure food is defrosted completely before cooking
4. Keep pets away from food
5. Ensure food is cooked thoroughly before eating. Meat
shouldn't have any pink bits
6. Serve reheated food piping hot
7. Keep raw meat and fish covered and store at the bottom of the
fridge
8. Store all perishable foods at 5°C (41°F) or less
9. Keep raw food covered up
10. Rinse fruit and vegetables under running water before eating
11. Throw away any food that's past its use-by date, doesn't smell
right and/or has fungus on it
What's the treatment?
Most infections last 24 to 48 hours, during which time fluid is often
lost from vomiting and diarrhoea. To prevent dehydration, drink
plenty of cooled boiled water and use rehydration powders if the
symptoms continue.
Sometimes antibiotic treatment is necessary; this can be
determined by testing for the micro-organism responsible.
It's especially important anyone whose work involves handling or
preparing food stays away from work while they have symptoms to
avoid infecting others. They must also notify, and seek advice from,
their local environmental health department.
If someone suspects that food bought from, or eaten in, a specific
shop, takeaway or restaurant is responsible, they should also
inform their local environmental health department, so food
hygiene standards can be investigated.
Thank
You