Food poisoning can happen to anyone. It is usually associated with abdominal pain, nausea, vomiting and diarrhea. If you are experiencing any of these symptoms (or, unfortunately, all of them), it is likely that you are suffering from food poisoning.
How does it happen?
Food poisoning, as the name suggests, is connected directly to the food you eat. Sometimes, the cause is your allergy or sensitivity to certain foods or types of foods but, usually, it happens when you consume something unhealthy or toxic. Your body is trying to get rid of the food, making your stomach feel upset. How to help yourself?
Drink as much as you can
The aforementioned diarrhea and vomiting can cause a significant loss of water in your body. After food poisoning, we usually don’t feel like eating or drinking, so that makes it even worse. Try to pay particular attention to preventing dehydration: even if you don’t feel like it, drink small amounts of water and/or electrolytes dissolved in water. Avoid juices, tea, coffee and sweet carbonated drinks — they can all cause further dehydration, not to mention they will definitely irritate your stomach. It is crucial to stay hydrated. Otherwise, you might have to go to the hospital and get an intravenous infusion. If you don’t feel like eating, that’s fine, but you need to drink. Also, a good trick, if water is hard to pass through, would be drinking electrolytes. They can hydrate you better with a smaller amount of fluids.
Avoid hard-to-digest food
Usually, in the first phase of food poisoning, we don’t feel like eating at all, but when we get better, the appetite comes back. While it may be hard to understand and even harder to enforce, do not rush to the kitchen. Your stomach is still irritated and you should take it slowly at first. Eat a roll with butter, jelly or something like that, easily digestible but filling at the same time. If your stomach doesn’t start to hurt again, you can try something more filling the next morning. In general, recovery from food poisoning can take up to several days, so don’t eat heavy foods for the next 2-3 days. Your stomach will thank you for it and you will recover faster.
What to pay attention to?
You may feel faint right after food poisoning, and your stomach can hurt a lot. If you notice any signs that worry you, such as blood in vomit or faeces, get medical care as soon as possible. Also, if the symptoms don’t go away within a few days, it may be time for a medical check-up. If you see anything disturbing, contact your doctor who will either calm you down or refer you to further diagnosis.