Foodborne Illness: What Consumers Need to Know What Is Foodborne
Illness? Foodborne illness is a preventable public health
challenge that causes an estimated 48 million illnesses and
3,000 deaths each year in the United States. It is an illness
that comes from eating contaminated food. The onset of symptoms
may occur within minutes to weeks and often presents itself as
flu-like symptoms, as the ill person may experience symptoms
such as nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, or fever. Because the
symptoms are often flu-like, many people may not recognize that
the illness is caused by harmful bacteria or other pathogens in
food. Everyone is at risk for getting a foodborne illness.
However, some people are at greater risk for experiencing a more
serious illness or even death should they get a foodborne
illness. Those at greater risk are infants, young children,
pregnant women and their unborn babies, older adults, and people
with weakened immune systems (such as those with HIV/AIDS,
cancer, diabetes, kidney disease, and t