A 35-year-old art therapist goes to see her doctor for abdominal cramps and diarrhea. Last weekend she ate lunch at her younger sibling’s high school graduation picnic, and several other friends and family members who attended are sick as well. Something from the picnic has sickened them. What is it?

In most cases of food poisoning the culprit is contamination from tiny bacteria, viruses or parasites that live in our environment. According to a primer published by the American Medical Association, the medical profession and the public have grown complacent about infectious organisms that cause this preventable condition. The result is that 76 million people get sick, 300,000 are hospitalized, and 5,000 die from foodborne illnesses in our country every year.

You can avoid these all-too-common infections with tips from the medical association.

The most frequent signs of foodborne illness are diarrhea, abdominal cramps, vomiting, headaches, muscles pains and fever. Symptoms usually start 12 to 72 hours after eating contaminated food, but I’ve found that some can occur between 30 minutes and four weeks later. Most people recover within four to seven days without antibiotics.

“Call your doctor immediately if symptoms are severe or the ill person is very young, very old, pregnant or already ill,” the American Medical Association says. The advice comes from the AMA report entitled “Diagnosis and Management of Foodborne Illness: A Primer for Physicians and Other Health Care Professionals.”

Now that you’re better informed about foodborne illness, let’s go back to our sick 35-year-old art therapist. It turns out that food from a local restaurant had been served at the picnic in question. In fact, the public health department had recently reported an outbreak of diarrhea in the community among others who ate at the same restaurant. The health department surmised that these illnesses were likely due to bacteria called enterotoxigenic Escherichia coli. The art-therapist’s diarrhea resolved on its own within five days and she went back to work.

Contact Dr. Elizabeth Smoots, a board-certified family physician and fellow of the American Academy of Family Physicians, at doctor@practicalprevention. com. Her columns are not intended as a substitute for medical advice or treatment. Before adhering to any recommendations in this column consult your health care provider.

2006 Elizabeth S. Smoots