It is very easy to confuse two or more health ailments as the same when they are not only different but also have very different and unrelated causes. Unless you have a wound or a bruise, a pain in any part of the body can be anything. It can be tissue inflammation, pain in the nerves, muscle spasm, skeletal injuries or it could be referred pain. In case of referred pain, the area where you feel the pain is not exactly where the problem is.
Two of the most perplexing health ailments are food poisoning and stomach virus. It isn’t that these are affecting people every day or anyone would have a chronic problem. Also, neither food poisoning nor stomach virus is the most common problem with the digestive system or gastrointestinal health. Gas or bloating, flatulence, general indigestion and constipation are much more common. There is a substantial difference between food poisoning and stomach virus. Let us explore the same so you can take the appropriate measures.
1. Stomach virus is essentially a bug that targets the intestines.
The stomach virus is contracted through contact. You may have come in contact with a person who has been infected by the stomach virus. You may have come in contact with a person who doesn’t necessarily have any ailment but has been in touch with another infected person. Essentially, you get infected by the stomach virus through touch and there’s contamination of water and food. Now, food poisoning is similar but different. You have to contract at least one infectious organism. It could be a virus, a parasite, bacteria or some other toxin, which could be living or nonliving. Food poisoning is primarily caused by drinking and/or eating contaminated water and/or food. Although it is not common, food poisoning may also be caused by materials that are not classified as toxins. A person’s digestive system can always react in a unique way.
2. There is substantial difference between food poisoning and stomach virus pertaining to the symptoms as well.
Stomach virus symptoms include watery diarrhea, vomiting and nausea, abdominal cramps, muscle aches, headache and fever. Most symptoms of stomach virus will become obvious only a day or two after being exposed to the specific virus. The symptoms can last for a day or two. In worse cases, the symptoms can easily last for ten days and more. Food poisoning has a few similar symptoms, like fever, vomiting, nausea and watery diarrhea. But food poisoning is also characterized by loss of appetite and fatigue. The symptoms will usually become obvious in a few hours after eating the contaminated food. It is quite possible that the symptoms will experienced within an hour of having a meal or drinking something. In some cases, the toxins or microorganisms take time to have an effect. In such cases, the symptoms will appear only in a few days, could be a few weeks. Depending on the severity of the contamination, the symptoms may last for a week or fortnight.
3. Both conditions have complications.
Stomach virus symptoms like diarrhea and vomiting will easily lead to dehydration, unless one is taken proper care of. Food poisoning will also cause dehydration due to the same two reasons. Food poisoning can turn out to be fatal for fetuses or yet to be born babies. There are a few strains of the E. coli bacteria that cause substantial damage to the kidneys and may even lead to failure of kidneys.
4. Stomach virus and food poisoning have similar tests to conduct a thorough diagnosis.
In case of the former, doctors usually focus on symptoms and then test the stool. This test alone will decipher the exact cause. If there is no bug or if the test results show bacteria, then they know it would be food poisoning, some other digestive or gastrointestinal problem. For food poisoning, doctors observe the symptoms and then ask for a stool test and a blood test. There may be special tests to look for parasites.
5. The exact treatments for food poisoning and stomach virus also vary.
Food poisoning calls for antibiotics if the symptoms are severe. The lost fluids due to vomiting and diarrhea must be replaced. Patients are often administered saline and glucose. Stomach virus symptoms are relatively milder and one must rest, also take saline and glucose among other recommended or prescribed fluids, steadily switch from a liquid diet to a solid diet which can include rice, toast and potatoes. Fatty and spicy foods, caffeine and dairy products should be avoided.
Both food poisoning and stomach virus infections can be avoided. One must be careful not to come in contact with anyone who may have been infected by a stomach virus. To avoid food poisoning, cleanliness and hygiene are the two most significant measures, especially in the kitchen and for cooking appliances and utensils.
