Food poisoning symptoms commonly include diarrhea, stomach pain or cramps, nausea, vomiting, and fever
. These symptoms typically start within hours to a few days after consuming contaminated food or drink
. The duration of food poisoning symptoms varies depending on the cause but most people recover within 12 to 48 hours
. However, symptoms can last up to a week or more in some cases, and certain infections may cause symptoms that persist for several days to weeks
. For example:
- Staphylococcus aureus symptoms appear within 30 minutes to 8 hours and last 24 to 48 hours
- Salmonella symptoms begin 6 hours to 6 days after exposure and last 4 to 7 days
- Norovirus symptoms start 12 to 48 hours after exposure and last 12 to 60 hours
- Campylobacter symptoms appear 2 to 5 days after exposure and last 2 to 10 days
- E. coli symptoms start 3 to 4 days after exposure and last 5 to 10 days
- Listeria symptoms can take 2 weeks or longer to appear and vary in duration
Severe symptoms or complications, such as bloody diarrhea, high fever, persistent vomiting, dehydration, or neurological symptoms, require medical attention and may prolong illness
. In summary, food poisoning symptoms usually last from about half a day to a few days, with most cases resolving within 1 to 2 days, but some infections can cause longer-lasting symptoms depending on the pathogen involved and individual factors
