Food Poisioning at WDW???

[jenjersnap]

I firmly believe that 99% of "food poisoning" is actually a norovirus strain. I have had true food poisoning - nearly 20 years ago - and OMG I still remember the agony. Since I've become a mom, the family has "enjoyed" all the perks of having small kids - rotoviruses and noroviruses - and they have been awful but nothing like my food poisoning.

Here's the thing - you go to a buffet and every single person in that restaurant has touched the utensils to serve up the food. That, IMO, is where most problems come from. Use Wet Wipes when you get back to the table, before you touch your food, glass, or utensils!

 

[Katiebell]

I had food poisoning one time when I was 14, and I will never forget it -- the room spun, my stomach hurt like someone had punched me hard, and I had to run into the bathroom so much I finally just gave up and laid on the floor in there I seriously wanted to die. It was from a hotel restaurant (not Disney).

In the many, many years since, and the many, many restaurant meals I've eaten, I've never gotten sick like that ever again. There have been times that something didn't agree with me, or I over-ate, or ate something that was too rich and it upset my stomach, but I've never gotten ptomaine poisoning ever again.

One thing I've learned over the years is that I can't tolerate local water anywhere we go -- not that the water in other cities is bad, but just that I'm not used to it, and it makes me sick to my stomach and other typical "traveler" symptoms. Even if I avoid drinking the water, other things sometimes add up too -- coffee, tea, ice in beverages, or fountain sodas...just always bring or buy bottled water for drinking, and bring immodium tablets just in case

 

[Leash]

FP in general (from bad or incorrectly prepared food) is MUCH rarer than overeating, allergic reactions, stomach flu, non allergic adverse reactions to new foods, acid reflux, or just a plain old tummy ache from mixing too much eating with too much walking.

I would bet that most people who say they "got FP" while at WDW are diagnosing themselves without the aid of a medical professional and picking the first thing that comes to mind, or picking what they think sounds the most dramatic.

Actual FP can be very serious. Believe me, you'd hear about it on the news if it happened at WDW.

I have chronic, horrendous digestive system problems and I have never, in over 27 years of visits to WDW, gotten FP at any on-site restaurant. I've gotten sick, but it was not FP. I don't think I've ever had FP anywhere else for that matter either. And trust me, I know stomach pain like you would not believe.

I'm right there with you on chronic, horrendous digestive system problems however I have gotten food poisioning but not at WDW. I am well aquainted with stomache pain and illness and food poisioning is in a class by itself, my best friend actually landed in the hospital for three days due to food poisioning. So like many other posters I think that most people who get some type of stomache bug while at WDW use food poisioning as a catch all.
I have an extremely sensitive stomache and after 9 days in the World I only got sick once due to a chef's mis-information on shallots.
So go and have fun and don't worry, use common sense and to be safe if you are really concerned I would say avoid buffets.

 

[tiggr33]

One thing I've learned over the years is that I can't tolerate local water anywhere we go -- not that the water in other cities is bad, but just that I'm not used to it, and it makes me sick to my stomach and other typical "traveler" symptoms. Even if I avoid drinking the water, other things sometimes add up too -- coffee, tea, ice in beverages, or fountain sodas...just always bring or buy bottled water for drinking, and bring immodium tablets just in case

Not to be snide sounding....but coffee, tea, ice and fountain sodas are all made with local water. So if you avoiding local waters, shouldn't you be avoiding all sources of it? Including among other things fresh fruit and veggies (watered with it, and cleaned in it).

Personally, I wish the immodium recommendations would stop. There is a time and place to take them. And it's not neccessarily at the first sign of a cramp or bathroom run. OK, gonna be blunt....if your body wants something expelled that badly, let it out. Generally (unless in a situation where stopping it is neccessary like there are no bathrooms- and Disney does not fit that description) diarrhea should be present for 24 hours typically before medicating for it.

 

[Luv2Roam]

Before we moved down here, I did find that by drinking the tap water, by day 4 I would get viral like symptoms.
DH always drinks bottled water. I finally wised up and stuck to bottled water when vacationing here too and no longer got sick.
Now I live here and the drinking water does not impact me. (Although I drink mostly bottled water too anyway.)

 

[Katiebell]

Not to be snide sounding....but coffee, tea, ice and fountain sodas are all made with local water. So if you avoiding local waters, shouldn't you be avoiding all sources of it? Including among other things fresh fruit and veggies (watered with it, and cleaned in it).

Well, when I read your words, I tried very hard to make them sound "not snide" Naw, seriously, that's exactly what I was saying...I don't drink the water when I travel, and if I take in too many other sources of local water -- beverages, ice, salad bars (yeah, I'd forgotten about that), then yep, it starts to bother me. Not that I'm gonna get Montezuma's Revenge in Orlando...just that I'm intolerant of a change in the water. But I'm not going to give up ice in my drinks, salads, or coffee (although I make coffee with bottled water our hotel room). I mentioned the water thing because what some folks might be thinking of as "food poisoning" might actually be a sensitivity to changing water.

Personally, I wish the immodium recommendations would stop. There is a time and place to take them. And it's not neccessarily at the first sign of a cramp or bathroom run. OK, gonna be blunt....if your body wants something expelled that badly, let it out. Generally (unless in a situation where stopping it is neccessary like there are no bathrooms- and Disney does not fit that description) diarrhea should be present for 24 hours typically before medicating for it.

Ummm...well...sheesh, how to put this gracefully.... I don't think it's been suggested at the "first sign" of anything. As for the time and place, well...if you are home in your own house, and you know for sure you aren't going to have to stand in line for a restroom, and if you aren't feeling really spiffy, can rest and relax, and you are sure you are going to be taking in plenty of fluids, then it's best to let nature take it's course, absolutely.

However...if you are on vacation, you only have a few days there and don't want to waste them sequestered in your hotel room...you are walking around in the hot Florida sun trying really hard to stay hydrated...and you can NOT risk that you will be too far from a bathroom...or you might be stuck in a line...or you might get to the bathroom and they have a line longer than the one for Space Mountain.... THEN you might want to have some immodium in your first aid kit As well as Tums, bandaids, sunburn relief, etc.

 

[pixie08]

Not food poising by any means but DH and I got got sick from food at mama Melroses 4 years ago. He refuses to ever go back. It wasn't so serious but we were out of commision for the rest of the night.