1. What is food poisoning?
Description
This article is from the Food Science FAQ, bypking123@sympatico.ca (Paul E. J. King) with numerous contributions by others.
1. What is food poisoning?
Food poisoning is illness caused by any harmful amount of a
natural or contaminating substance in a food, but especially illness
caused by some highly infective kinds of bacteria. If not prevented
-- as it can be by care and good hygiene -- some kinds of bacteria
can grow to large numbers in food and produce toxins (poisons) some
of which are difficult to destroy by cooking. Other kinds can cause
illness by growing to large numbers in the digestive system. Symptoms
include abdominal pain, diarrhoea and vomiting, and may last from a
few hours to a few days. In extreme cases food poisoning can prove
fatal, especially to babies, the elderly and others with weakened
immune systems.
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