Dining at restaurants might be an enjoyable way to eat your meals, but experiencing diarrhea afterward can leave you with a foul odor. Diarrhea is frequent, loose and watery stools that contain more water, minerals and salts than normal stools. Eating certain restaurant foods can increase your risk of diarrhea, particularly if these foods are contaminated with bacteria, viruses or parasites. Consult your doctor about the reasons why restaurant food gives you diarrhea.
Salmonella
Salmonella is a common bacterial infection that occurs from contaminated food or water and affects your gastrointestinal tract with symptoms that include diarrhea and abdominal cramps within 72 hours of ingestion. Although many people can recover within a few days without any treatment, diarrhea can cause you to become dehydrated and require immediate medical attention. Complications can become life-threatening if the infection spreads beyond your intestines. Your risk of salmonella infection is high when traveling to countries with poor sanitation or eating foods in restaurants in the United States that are left out in hot and humid conditions or that come into contact with feces, such as food preparers who do not wash their hands after using the bathroom. Commonly infected foods include fruits, vegetables, raw eggs, and raw meat, poultry and seafood.
E. Coli
Eating restaurant foods that contain pathological strains of Escherichia coli can cause diarrhea. Escherichia coli, also called E. coli, are bacteria that normally reside in your intestines, but some strains can induce bloody diarrhea, kidney failure and death. Having a weakened immune system increases your risk for complications from the infection. Common foods served at restaurants that might contain E. coli include fruits, vegetables, meat and dairy, particularly foods that are raw, unpasteurized or contaminated through unclean hands, utensils or surfaces. Recovery from E. coli without treatment can take 5 to 10 days. Your physician can prescribe an antibiotic in severe cases.
Norovirus
Noroviruses, also called "Norwalk-like viruses," are the leading cause of food-borne disease outbreaks in the United States. Noroviruses cause inflammation in the gastrointestinal tract, diarrhea, stomach pain and vomiting. Infection from norovirus is highly contagious and might spread in restaurants through water or food, such as raw shellfish or ready-to-eat produce, which is contaminated by fecal matter during preparation or comes in close contact with a person who is infected.
Trichinosis
Trichinosis, also called trichinellosis, is an infection caused by roundworms, parasites that use your body to stay alive and reproduce. Trichinosis occurs when you eat larvae in undercooked meat. The larvae mature into adult worms in your intestine and can cause diarrhea, abdominal cramps and malaise. The larvae can also migrate to other parts of your body and cause inflammation of body tissues and organs.
References
- National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases; "What I Need to Know About Diarrhea"; April 2011
- MayoClinic.com; "Salmonella Infection"; April 16, 2011
- MedlinePlus; "E. Coli Infections"; June 13, 2011
- National Center For Immunization and Respirtory Diseases; "Norovirus"; May 20, 2011
- MayoClinic.com; "Norovirus Infection"; 2009
- MayoClinic.com; "Trichinosis"; February 20, 2010
