Food poisoning symptoms often start within a few days of eating contaminated food. But symptoms can start after a few hours or as long as a few weeks after eating infected food.
Food poisoning symptoms often start within a few days of eating contaminated food. But symptoms can start after a few hours or as long as a few weeks after eating infected food.
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Food poisoning symptoms include:
Food poisoning symptoms often start within a few days of eating contaminated food. But symptoms can start after a few hours or as long as a few weeks after eating infected food.
Most cases of food poisoning are not serious and get better within a week. However, pregnant women can be at increased risk of food poisoning complications, such as dehydration.
If you are pregnant and think you have food poisoning, see your doctor or go to hospital immediately.
Food poisoning is an illness caused by eating or drinking something contaminated with viruses, bacteria, toxins, parasites, and/or chemicals.
Gastroenteritis is a viral or bacterial infection of the gut.
Gastroenteritis and food poisoning can both cause diarrhoea and vomiting, so it can be difficult to tell if you have gastroenteritis or food poisoning.
However, food poisoning is often more severe than gastroenteritis. Some types of food poisoning can also cause symptoms, such as bloody diarrhoea and fever, which are not usually seen in people with gastroenteritis.
Yes. If you have diarrhoea and vomiting from food poisoning you can spread the infection to others. You can reduce the risk of this by staying off work and school, and avoiding contact with other people for two days after your symptoms have cleared.
Food poisoning symptoms usually pass within a week.
Escherichia coli (E. coli) is a type of bacteria that causes food poisoning. It is most commonly caught from:
Food poisoning usually gets better on its own within a week.
Natural remedies to help manage the symptoms of food poisoning include:
It is safe to carry on breastfeeding if you have vomiting and diarrhoea from food poisoning. The infection causing your symptoms usually cannot be passed to your baby through your breast milk.
However, you should try to drink plenty of liquids to prevent dehydration.
If your symptoms do not get better after a few days, see your doctor.
Important: Our website provides useful information but is not a substitute for medical advice. You should always seek the advice of your doctor when making decisions about your health.