Food poisoning is caused by several different types of bacteria that contaminate certain foods. Symptoms include stomach cramps, diarrhea, fever and vomiting, reports Medline Plus, and usually presents two to six hours after eating the contaminated food. Call a doctor to determine if you need to be treated, but most cases of food poisoning will clear up after a few days. Some foods are more likely to cause illness than others and being aware of this can prevent you from getting sick.
Undercooked Eggs
Eggs can give you a type of food poisoning called salmonella if they are not fully cooked. Completely cooking an egg will kill any salmonella that is present, so eating them over easy or soft boiled increases the chance that you will become ill after they are consumed. When you order eggs at a restaurant, be sure they are cooked through to lower your chances of getting sick. When preparing eggs at home, be sure that no other foods come into contact with a raw egg and wash your hands and cooking equipment right away to prevent cross contamination, recommends the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, or CDC. Foods that contain raw eggs also put you at risk of food poisoning and include raw cookie dough and eggnog.
Ground Beef
Some ground beef is contaminated with E.coli and will cause food poisoning if not cooked properly. According to the CDC, ground beef should be cooked to 160 degrees before you eat it to kill any pathogens that could make you sick. Order hamburgers well done in restaurants to prevent an E.coli infection and fully heat any leftovers before you eat them. When cooking with ground beef at home, use separate utensils to prepare it so that you don't infect other foods with any bacteria that is present. Keep meat on the bottom shelf of your refrigerator, so that if it leaks or drips, it doesn't contaminate other foods. Raw and undercooked poultry and seafood can also cause food poisoning so follow the same precautions with them.
Fruits and Vegetables
People who don't wash their produce can become ill as a result. Contaminated water or manure, as well as unsanitary harvesting and packing conditions, can infect fruits and vegetables with bacteria that causes food poisoning, reports the CDC. It is important to thoroughly wash all produce before consuming it to reduce your risk of getting sick. Sprouts are a particularly dangerous vegetable to eat because they are usually contaminated through the soil and the pathogens concentrate on the actual sprout, making it hard to kill, since they are rarely cooked before being consumed. Unpasteurized fruit and vegetable juices also sometimes harbor bacteria, so avoid them whenever possible.
