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Emmy1234's avatar

How long before I know if I'll get food poisoning?

Asked by Emmy1234 (878 points ) February 19th, 2014


Observing members: 0 Composing members: 0

23 Answers

Coloma's avatar

Anywhere from almost immediately up until about 12 hours later. Usually within the first 2–4 hours after eating . If you aren’t sick within 4–12 hours you are out of the woods.

Emmy1234's avatar

If I try to puke it up will that maybe decrease my chances : (

Cruiser's avatar

If it was consistently refrigerated I would say at first glance you are probably not going to get sick as most food produces put a safety margin of error of shelf life that both protects you and them form ford born illness issues with their products causing issues for their consumers. Going forward do check your expiration dates and play it safer.

Emmy1234's avatar

Oh I hope your right @Cruiser! No doubt I have been slacking on my expiration duties!

Symbeline's avatar

Food poisoning from meat would come at 5 to 12 hours…expired mayonnaise, I really don’t know. But I don’t think there’s much to worry about that, for reasons explained by @Cruiser. As long as your mayo wasn’t green or liquidy or something…it may taste strange when it’s pretty old, but one bite probably won’t do much.
And puking it up isn’t going to help, unless you do it RIGHT after eating. But I wouldn’t worry about it much. Mayo is already made from expired stuff, anyway…and for all the fake mayo which ISN’T, it’s filled with preservatives, enough that you would know right away if it was no good anymore after opening it up.

ZEPHYRA's avatar

It is almost certain that nothing bad will happen if it was refrigerated. In the worst case you may hit the loo a couple of times.

pleiades's avatar

The most that might happen is diarrhea. Brace yourself! Fire in the HOLE Kaboooooom

JLeslie's avatar

I agree with Cruiser. Most likely you won’t get sick. If you are going to get sick it could easily be something very mild like maybe some diarrhea. Within 24 hours you will know. Severe food poisoning from things like Salmonella and e.coli you usually get sick within 6 hours, it can be longer. I wouldn’t panic if I were you.

whitenoise's avatar

Dairy products that spoil in general taste very foul. You would have smelled during preparation. You will likely be fine.

glacial's avatar

@whitenoise There’s no dairy in Miracle Whip. It’s mostly vegetable oil, with spices and a little (modified) egg.

As others have said, it’s very unlikely you’d get sick; that stuff would probably survive a nuclear blast.

GloPro's avatar

Let us know if you got sick!

ninjacolin's avatar

Don’t forget to get sick so you can let us know about it!

Emmy1234's avatar

@ninjacolin – sorry to disappoint almost at the 12 hr mark and no illness yet :)

JLeslie's avatar

I’d say you are free and clear. Probably it goes rancid over time and that is the unusual taste.

Cruiser's avatar

@Emmy1234 Glad to hear you are OK

elbanditoroso's avatar

Six weeks is no big deal if it was in the refrigerator.

If the Miracle Whip was bad, you would have smelled it the moment you opened the jar.

Symbeline's avatar

Yeah I think at this point, you’re fine. :)

Emmy1234's avatar

@elbanditoroso- It smelled and tasted like cardboard….Not that I eat cardboard but I imagine thats what it would taste like if I did. lol

Symbeline's avatar

I’ve eaten cardboard.

Anyways glad you’re okay. I’ve had food poisoning from chicken last spring, I can tell you it is NOT pleasant, not one bit.

Emmy1234's avatar

@Symbeline – Yes I’ve heard its quite unpleasant—stuff coming out both ends with major stomach cramps. Glad I dodged that one! I need to be more careful!

Espiritus_Corvus's avatar

About four hours with botulism. It feels like you have a porcupine in your stomach, you double over in sever cramps. Then you spew fluids out of both ends for hours. Head ache, fever. Dehydration is a problem. No matter how hard it is to keep it down, take in water and electrolytes.

Salmonella, also known as typhus, is quite common through ingesting improperly cooked poultry in less than hygiene situations. It takes longer to become symptomatic and can be deadly among infants, elderly, and the immuno-comprimised. It feels a lot like Botulism, I mean I really don’t think a patient can tell the difference, first they are afraid they are going to die, then they are afraid they won’t. Bloody sick. But is Salmonella claims more lives around the world.

Whereas you become symptomatic with Botulism within 4 to 6 hours after ingestion, Salmonella victims experience diarrhea, head ache, fever, vomiting, and abdominal cramps 12 to 72 hours after infection.

Symbeline's avatar

@Espiritus_Corvus Salmonella is what I got, from chicken that I ordered at a takeout place. You spew from both ends, but not just once or twice, I must have threw up at least 15 times. And dehydration IS a problem. I couldn’t even take a TINY SIP of water without it coming back up 5 minutes later. I got pretty scared actually, and I had done homework online, and read indeed that it can be deadly to small kids and the elderly. Damn recovery took 2 days, the article I read said it can take up to a week.

ninjacolin's avatar

Excuses! You’re slacking in your obligations to us and now you’re trying to blame it on the sandwich

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