According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) about 325,000 people are hospitalized with a foodborne illness. This can cost employers lost productions costs, wages, and medical expenses of $6.5 to $34.9 billion. People contract foodborne illness by eating a food that has been contaminated with Salmonella, Hepatitis A, E-coli, Campylobacter, Norovirus, Shigella, and Listeria.
Foodborne Illness Symptoms
Foodborne illnesses or food poisoning are a combination of fungi, viruses, parasites, and bacteria that cause the individual to become very ill. Some of the common symptoms of foodborne illnesses include diarrhea, abdominal cramping, bloating, nausea vomiting, fever, fatigue, headache, and body aches. People that have food poisoning normally have a delay in symptoms after they eat the food. During this time the foodborne illnesses are infecting the body and it could be several weeks before you have an actual symptom occur.
The standard rule of thumb is to see a doctor if you experience diarrhea or vomiting for more than 48 hours and if you have a fever of 102 degrees Fahrenheit. People that are experiencing diarrhea need to drink more liquids than usual because their bodies are losing a lot of fluids. Drinks like Gatorade can help to restore the electrolytes that your body is losing. When the body causes you to have diarrhea or vomiting, it is trying to cleanse itself of the virus or foreign pathogen. People often experience a “24-hour flu bug” and this is actually caused from a foodborne illness. Your intestines simply may not be able to digest the foods you have eaten and therefore they are purging them from your body.
Treating Foodborne Illness
Depending upon the type of foodborne illness you have, your doctor could prescribe a special treatment program or they may even place you in the hospital for several days. People with foodborne illnesses normally become dehydrated fairly quickly so doctors normally tell people to drink more water and to stay away from drinks that contain sugars; this actually worsens the diarrhea symptoms.
If you have employees that have a foodborne illness, allow them to stay home until they feel better. Employees that contract a “24 hour flu bug” normally feel better within a day or two and they can return to work.
Preventing Food borne Illness
Employers can prevent the spread of food borne illnesses by keeping their offices clean. If you have employees that eat at their desks, ask them to consume their food within 30 minutes. Some employees will let their food sit for longer than 2 hours and it can become a breeding ground for bacteria by the time they are ready to finish eating it. Teach your employees about the importance of hand washing and why they need to wash their hands before and after they eat. Employees can easily infect themselves with food poisoning if they go to the bathroom, don’t wash their hands and then eat their lunch. They can even get sick if they eat their lunch before washing their hands because of all the surfaces their hands have touched, like doorknobs.
If you have an office break room, make sure it is kept clean. Countertops and tables need to be cleansed with antibacterial spray each day, especially after an employee has eaten there. If anyone is handling raw meat, teach them about the importance of washing the areas where the meat has been. Raw meat is a breeding ground for bacteria and you can easily infect your co-workers with salmonella if you have brought un-cooked chicken to the office.
Stay up with news information about foodborne illnesses. Warn your employees about foods that have had problems with E-coli or other dangerous food borne illnesses.