Knowra Foodborne illness Foodborne illness Foodborne illness is disease caused by eating food contaminated with pathogens, toxins, or harmful chemicals. It ranges from brief gastrointestinal illness to severe or life-threatening complications.
Foodborne infection : Illness caused when living pathogens in food enter the body and multiply or invade tissues. Pathogens such as Salmonella can cause disease by infecting the person who eats contaminated food.
Food contamination : The presence of unwanted biological, chemical, or physical agents in food. Foodborne illness begins when contamination introduces a hazard that survives or reaches a harmful dose.
Food safety : The practices and controls used to prevent food from causing illness or injury. Food safety reduces the contamination and exposure that lead to foodborne illness.
Waterborne disease : Illness caused by pathogens or harmful substances transmitted through contaminated water. Waterborne disease shares many causes and symptoms with foodborne illness but has a different primary exposure route.
Dehydration : A deficit of body water that can occur when fluid losses exceed intake. Vomiting and diarrhea can cause dehydration, especially in young children and older adults.
Foodborne intoxication : Illness caused by consuming toxins already present in food, often without the toxin-producing organism remaining alive. Preformed toxins can cause rapid symptoms even when cooking has killed the bacteria that made them.
Pathogen : A biological agent capable of causing disease in a host. Foodborne infections are caused by pathogens carried into the body through food.
Hazard analysis and critical control points : A preventive food-safety system that identifies hazards and controls them at critical production steps. HACCP targets biological and chemical hazards before contaminated food reaches consumers.
Norovirus infection : A highly contagious infection that causes acute gastroenteritis and spreads through food, water, surfaces, and person-to-person contact. Norovirus can be foodborne, but its multiple transmission routes complicate source attribution.
Hemolytic uremic syndrome : A serious condition involving red blood cell destruction, low platelet counts, and acute kidney injury. Some Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli infections can trigger this life-threatening complication.
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