Food poisoning

Food Poisoning/Food Borne Illness

The initial point of contact in all cases of suspected food poisoning is always your G.P. In addition, details of the suspected case should be referred to this Authority.

What is food poisoning?

Food poisoning can actually result from eating food contaminated with bacteria, viruses, other organisms, chemicals or poisonous plants and fish, although nowadays most people only associate it with eating food contaminated by bacteria. Symptoms will vary depending on the cause but will include some or all of the following:-

Diarrhoea
Vomiting and/or nausea
Stomach pains/cramps
Fever, Headache
Aching joints and muscles

Please note that whilst the symptoms of vomiting, diarrhoea and abdominal pain are commonly associated with food poisoning, there are in fact many different illnesses that can also cause these symptoms but have no links with food consumption, for example Noro Virus or the Winter Vomiting Virus.

The only way of confirming that a person is in fact suffering from food poisoning, brought on by consuming a food contaminated by a food poisoning organism, is by taking a faecal specimen (stool sample) from the person and having it examined to see if it contains evidence of food poisoning organisms. This procedure is usually carried out by a laboratory on behalf of a person’s own Doctor. If a food poisoning organism is confirmed then a formal notification procedure exists for the Doctor to notify the Council so that the incident can be investigated. For this reason, before such matters can be formally investigated it is necessary for you to visit your GP and have a faecal sample taken to confirm whether or not you are in fact suffering from food poisoning.

Different food poisoning bacteria are associated with different types of food. The period between the contaminated food being eaten and the illness starting (incubation period) varies for the different organisms, and the level of contamination in the food, meaning that the symptoms of food poisoning can sometimes start almost immediately but in other cases the symptoms may take up to 10 days to occur! For this reason, whilst many people blame the last thing they ate, it is in fact extremely uncommon for this to be the case.

In many instances of alleged food poisoning it is very difficult to link the cause of the illness to the consumption of a specific food. Often this can only be demonstrated where a number of people have been affected, or samples of suspected foods are available for analysis and the food is found to contain evidence of the same type of organism as that identified as affecting the people.

All food businesses are subject to routine programmed inspection based on a risk rating system. During the inspections food hygiene and food safety matters are discussed with both management and staff. Prior to the inspection taking place records for the premises are checked and, where appropriate, the inspection will take into account any alleged food poisonings that are recorded.

Reporting food poisoning

GPs have a statutory duty to notify The Council of all suspected and confirmed cases of gastrointestinal illness caused by food poisoning/food borne bacteria. We are also notified of positive cases by the Kent Health Protection Unit.

Outbreaks of food poisoning

An outbreak is when two or more unrelated cases occur from the same source. Outbreaks are investigated in conjunction with the Kent Health Protection Unit.

Finding out how you got food poisoning

It is extremely difficult to establish the source of isolated cases of food poisoning. All confirmed cases of food borne illness will be sent a questionnaire. The information that this provides may help prevent infections in the future.