Nothing ruins a vacation like a case of food poisoning. Just as you're all set to take in the sights or enjoy the exotic cuisine, your stomach revolts and takes the rest of your body with it. A mild case of food poisoning can disrupt a trip by keeping you confined to your quarters. At its worst it can cause dehydration and serious complications, and require you to seek a doctor's help, even though you're thousands of miles from home.
Food poisoning is a general term for any number of illnesses caused by eating contaminated food or drinking contaminated water. Food poisoning can cause flu-like symptoms including nausea, vomiting, stomach cramps and diarrhea, and occasionally lead to extreme dehydration and kidney damage, according to the Mayo Clinic. Food poisoning can happen to anyone, anywhere, but traveling—especially to places with inferior sanitation—can increase the risk.
Food poisoning is caused by parasites, bacteria and viruses. Travelers commonly risk food poisoning by eating at unfamiliar (and potentially unclean) restaurants—especially in areas with standards of sanitation lower than those to which tourists (and their immune systems) are unaccustomed. Food can become contaminated through improper cooking, handling and storage, according to the Mayo Clinic.
In addition, foreign travelers may develop food poisoning by ingesting pathogens against which their bodies have no defense. Foreign travelers are commonly advised to avoid the local water; while locals can drink it without consequence, its unfamiliar pathogens may cause an adverse reaction in outsiders.
The effects of food poisoning vary depending on the source of contamination and the health of the person affected, according to the Mayo Clinic. In general food poisoning causes nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, stomach pain and cramps, fever, reduced appetite and exhaustion.
Food poisoning can interrupt or even ruin travel plans. The symptoms can take hold a few hours or days after the person has consumed the product responsible, according to the Mayo Clinic. Some cases go away within a day, some last several days and especially severe cases can linger for more than a week, according to the Mayo Clinic.
For domestic travel, addressing a case of food poisoning might be as simple as calling the family doctor's 24-hour number and receiving a prescription to pick up at a local pharmacy. But travelers abroad should purchase a short-term insurance policy that covers them in their area of travel, according to the U.S. Department of State; American insurance policies, including Medicare and Medicaid, typically are not honored in other countries.
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommend eating at restaurants with proper health certification, though food can become contaminated well before it's shipped to the restaurant.
Treatment for food poisoning generally consists of relieving symptoms and replacing fluids lost through vomiting, diarrhea and the patient's reluctance to eat or drink. Severe dehydration requires intravenous treatment in a hospital or clinic, according to the Mayo Clinic. Doctors may also prescribe antibiotics for severe cases caused by bacteria. Pregnant women with food poisoning should seek prompt treatment to keep the illness from affecting the baby, according to the Mayo Clinic.
Patients with mild cases of food poisoning may be able to tough it out, but should be on the lookout for severe symptoms that require professional medical treatment. According to the Mayo Clinic, these include frequent vomiting for more than two days, vomiting of blood, severe diarrhea lasting longer than three days, bloody stools, high fever, signs of dehydration and extreme abdominal pain.
John Zaremba began writing professionally in 1997. He has worked at some of the country's finest small daily newspapers, including "The Beacon News" and "The Patriot Ledger." Zaremba is a graduate of the University of Illinois.