Information About the Causes of Diarrhea and Vomiting From Food Poisoning

When you ask almost any adult or child which two illness-related symptoms they find the worst to experience, you’ll receive an almost unanimous response that vomiting and diarrhea are equally bad.

These two conditions can appear in individuals of all ages either as a solitary concern or in tandem with each other. Also, both can lead to dehydration, a potentially life-threatening condition. For that reason, understanding the symptoms and causes of each helps in saving lives.

If you want to know more about urgent care in Katy, TX or Sealy urgent care and how the medical staff at both facilities are prepared to treat diarrhea and vomiting in patients of every age, we hope you’ll keep reading.

Look at a Common Culprit: Food Poisoning

If you experience either one of these conditions either on their own or together, there’s a good chance it’s caused by food poisoning. The condition occurs when infectious organisms or their toxins have contaminated food that’s recently been consumed. And although the symptoms will vary based on the type of contamination, most patients will experience one or more of these five most common symptoms:

  • Nausea
  • Vomiting
  • Diarrhea
  • Abdominal Pain
  • Fever

Although there are many over-the-counter products available to treat these symptoms, many medical professionals agree that seeking urgent treatment from a medical professional is preferred – especially if the symptoms are accompanied by signs of dehydration and fever above 100.4 degrees.

Because food poisoning has a rapid onset after the contaminated food has been ingested, there may be times when patients find themselves in distress in the middle of the night or the early hours of the morning. That’s when knowing where your nearest urgent care facility can come in especially handy.

At Preferred Urgent Care, our staff can diagnose and treat not only your vomiting and diarrhea conditions but help to keep dehydration from complicating the disorders.

Early Diagnosis and Treatment Can Also Aid in Your Recovery Time

Many patients prefer to seek immediate medical treatment for food poisoning for one simple reason: a quicker recovery time. Even though the condition often clears up within two to four days, there are instances when you may not want to spend that much time away from work or parenting responsibilities.

That’s when knowing that you can be a walk-in patient at an urgent care near you is especially convenient. Instead of spending up to four days between the bed and the bathroom, you can choose a quick trip to an urgent care facility near you for prompt treatment and a much quicker recovery period.

Vomiting & Diarrhea Tips to Avoid Dehydration

Even though it may seem like a waste to ingest liquids when you’re quickly expelling them, it’s critically important to take small sips of water, sports drinks, or ginger-flavored drinks (including tea) to keep your body hydrated.

You should also try to ingest small amounts of foods that are gentle on your stomach to help keep your nutrition requirements satisfied. Even if you do not feel like eating anything, try to choose a food that you can nibble on in small increments over time. Some suggestions include options from the popular BRAT diet: bananas, rice, applesauce, and toast (whole grain).

You may be tempted to ingest an over-the-counter diarrhea medicine, but if your condition is a result of food poisoning, it is better to not use a treatment such as this so the contaminated food can pass through your system as quickly as possible. The quicker the contamination is passed, the quicker you will start to feel better. That’s another reason to try to ingest foods from the BRAT diet – you need to provide your body with something to pass.

Don’t Let Lack of Insurance Stop You From Seeking the Medical Care You Need

You may be reading this and thinking, “Sure, I’d love to go to urgent care and feel better faster than two to four days, but I don’t have insurance.” At Preferred Urgent Care, we believe that every patient should have access to quality medical care, regardless of insurance. That’s why our prices are significantly lower than in an emergency room or from a gastrointestinal specialist in the area. In fact, self-pay patients will never pay more than $200 for their visit, which can be a fraction of the cost of lost wages when untreated food poisoning symptoms can last for up to four days.

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