Bacterial food poisoning

Food poisoning is an acute gastro-enteritis or intestinal disorder resulting from the ingestion of foods contaminated with either living microorganisms, or their products (toxins) or inorganic chemical substances and poison derived from plants and animals. The condition is characterized by the history of ingestion of common food, attack of many persons at a time and similarity of signs and symptoms in majority of cases.

 
Food poisoning may be bacterial and non-bacterial. The non-bacterial food poisoning is caused by chemicals such as arsenic, certain plant and sea foods. In recent years, there has been a growing concern about contamination of food by chemicals, e.g., fertilizers, pesticides, etc. The bacterial food poisoning is caused by the ingestion of foods contaminated with living bacteria or their products (toxins).