possible WDW food poisoning?

[nikinicole13]

I worked in WDW for like 8 months & pretty much ate mostly at the parks & the cafeterias there. I didnt get sick once.

But yeah, theme parks are just like a breeding ground for germs. Besides, idk about in FL... but up here in NC there is a new strain of the flu going around.

Also, if youre not used to being in hot weather & pushing yourself to the point of exhaustion, then youre more likely to get sick. There were quite a few ppl to pass out & stuff like that when I was working at WDW, bc they werent used to the heat & all. Thats the only thing about Disney, you need a while to see everything & ppl try to pack it all into a few days. Its just not going to happen.

 

[Dopey420]

And it can be spread by an infected person touching a surface and someone else coming along touching the same surface and then touching their eye, nose, mouth etc.

Or from a parent not washing their hands afer changing a diaper, or a leaking diaper, or , oh yeah, I remember a post a while back about a parent changing a diaper on the condiment stand at Cosmic Rays....

 

[Luv2Roam]

I too have seen diaper changing in very odd (and unsanitary) places. It makes me thinkj twice about where I sit or lay food to eat.
Also from observation there is a reason why I avoid buffets unless I am one of the first people there.

 

[ColleenG]

Or from a parent not washing their hands afer changing a diaper, or a leaking diaper, or , oh yeah, I remember a post a while back about a parent changing a diaper on the condiment stand at Cosmic Rays....

That is just gross. I hope someone said something to the idiot parent changing a diaper near food. I only change my kids' diapers in the bathrooms and wipe the changing station down with a Clorox wipe before and after I use it. Two things I ALWAYS travel with: Purell and Clorox wipes.

 

[MineeBaby]

I have always wiped everything down too excpet I have just used baby wipes. After this last trip though where my 2 year old daughter was sick (See above) we are going to do the purell thing and we will start using the disinfectent wipes too. Wish I would have thought of this before. And I thought I was doing a good job too!

Heidi

 

[NEVERENOUGHWDW]

I have always wiped everything down too excpet I have just used baby wipes. After this last trip though where my 2 year old daughter was sick (See above) we are going to do the purell thing and we will start using the disinfectent wipes too. Wish I would have thought of this before. And I thought I was doing a good job too!

Heidi

Thankyou, Thankyou....we do the same thing. I am amazed how many parents do not. Not to mention all the people that leave the bathroom without washing their hands and allow their kids to do the same. Big reason I stay away from buffets......I wonder when those hands came in contact with soap & water!

 

[SueM in MN]

Thankyou, Thankyou....we do the same thing. I am amazed how many parents do not. Not to mention all the people that leave the bathroom without washing their hands and allow their kids to do the same. Big reason I stay away from buffets......I wonder when those hands came in contact with soap & water!

The thing that always amazes me is the number of parents who keep up a steady stream of "Don't touch the toilet. Don't touch the wall. Don't touch anything" to their small children while they are in the stall (one child even said she was falling and the mom's response was "Don't touch the toilet").
But, then they go out of the bathroom without anyone washing their hands.

 

[_queenie_]

My DD13 became very ill after eating the crab salad at CG on 2/27/08. The doctor confirmed to us that the symptoms and timing were perfect for food poisoning (I don't think I need to go into detail). It may have been something else, but that's just what he said. I'm not trying to blame Disney.

 

[silverarrowknits]

I have started carrying around antibacterial moisturizer with me since I felt I should clean my hands more often and keep my hands soft. Luckily, I have never gotten violently ill from food at WDW, but I do keep away from a lot of the fried and oil food. My stomach is super sensitive and eating "junk food" for an entire weekend just makes me feel ill. I am really sorry so many people have gotten really sick at WDW. It really stinks to be sick when you are on vacation.

 

[mizzougrad91]

My sister and I both had food poisoning after eating the same meal at the Land. We had lunch there and almost 12 later we both got sick about the same time. The next day we went to Guest Services at Epcot and they were very sorry and refunded the cost of our meal and gave us passes for two free days each. We were not asked to sign a non-disclosure document.

 

[NEVERENOUGHWDW]

My sister and I both had food poisoning after eating the same meal at the Land. We had lunch there and almost 12 later we both got sick about the same time. The next day we went to Guest Services at Epcot and they were very sorry and refunded the cost of our meal and gave us passes for two free days each. We were not asked to sign a non-disclosure document.

12 hours later? Virus....

 

[mizzougrad91]

Food poisoning usually shows anywhere between 8-12 hours. It depends on your age and the type of food poisoning you have.

 

[dancin_princess]

As far as people always looking to peg WDW for food poisoning, the first thought that goes through my mind is based on the amount of people I have watched NOT wash their hands before leaving the bathrooms I would blame it on an infected surface outside the kitchen.....

I totally agree. They dont wash their hands leaving the bathrooms and then they touch door knobs, elevator buttons, hand rails, etc and the germs spread.

 

[Uncleromulus]

Don't cases of "possible" food poisoning have to be reported to local health authorities (by the physcian or hospital making the "official" diagnosis)?
Saying or thinking you have food poisoning dosen't make it so. A reaction to a food or a meal could be something else entirely--.

 

[mizzougrad91]

I agree sometimes people assume it's food poisoning when it's really a virus. When you have full blown food poisoning there is no doubt! When you are throwing up every 15-20 min for several hours that is not a virus. Generally you feel better within 12 hours after you became sick. I feel bad when I hear about children coming down with this at Disney. How miserable.

 

[DisneyBaby!]

I am not sure what the Florida requirements are, but many states require all foodservice managers be certified in sanitation and some go so far as to have all line level employees be serv-safe certified (this is an NRA sponsored program). Having worked at some high volume restaurants and knowing what is at stake, I highly doubt the foods involved were the primary source of infection. It is most likely like what other posts have said, any of the surfaces throughout the parks, after going thorough the classes it kinda freaks you out what can get you sick from where. The only way to prove the food is the source is to actually test the food involved from the restaurant.

I live about a mile away from the location of the one of the largest outbreaks on record, involving hundreds to thousands of illness, but no deaths, it involved gross negligence, I mean they really had to try to mess up. Just a few small things done correctly would have prevented this. The result was the restaurant never reopened, the people involved lost everything. I assure you, the systems the have in place at Disney are probably pretty amazing, your food is safe. You are more likely to get sick in you own kitchen than out at a restaurant anywhere.

One final word, just wash your hands, water as hot as you can stand, lather up with soap and scrub for 20 seconds. Most people rinse off, and maybe use a little soap for a few seconds. Do this after using the bathroom, before and after meals, after you blow your nose Don't use hand sanitizer, that only kills any beneficial bacteria and leaves the strongest most dangerous pathogens alive and they don't work. I have yet to meet a health inspector who advocates the use of them. I do feel bad, especially for the kids, this would be a horrible memory to have of the Happiest Place on Earth.

 

[_queenie_]

When you have full blown food poisoning there is no doubt! When you are throwing up every 15-20 min for several hours that is not a virus. Generally you feel better within 12 hours after you became sick. I feel bad when I hear about children coming down with this at Disney. How miserable.

That's exactly what happened to my DD13. She started getting sick a few hours after eating, and then constantly kept throwing up. It stopped about 10 hours after she eat the food, but she still felt "sick" for a few days (having a hard time walking, etc). It was very different from when we all got the stomach flu a few years ago.

 

[SueM in MN]

One final word, just wash your hands, water as hot as you can stand, lather up with soap and scrub for 20 seconds. Most people rinse off, and maybe use a little soap for a few seconds. Do this after using the bathroom, before and after meals, after you blow your nose Don't use hand sanitizer, that only kills any beneficial bacteria and leaves the strongest most dangerous pathogens alive and they don't work. I have yet to meet a health inspector who advocates the use of them.

The other information you posted is correct, but some of this information is not. I bolded what is not. I am certified in Infection Control, currently working as an infection Control Nurse. I also worked in Public Health for 14 years and did a lot of investigations of possible foodborne ourbreaks during that time.
Hot water is not necessary for washing hands and is actually harmful because it strips the natural oils from the hands and can cause skin problems (drying, cracking). Water hot enough to actually make a difference to the germs on hands would cause skin burns. Soap is formulated to work best in warm water, so that is best (and safest to the hands) to use. If you don't have warm water, cold is OK too. The scrubbing action actually loosens germs and the running water rinses them away.

Alcohol Hand Sanitizer is safe and effective. It kills almost all the germs (not just the easy to kill ones or the beneficial ones) and it does not encourage the growth of the most dangerous germs. It does not kill most bacterial spores (but, soap doesn't either - friction and running water get rid of those).
It is extensively used in hospitals because it does a good and fast job of killing germs, is fast to use and leaves hands in better shape for most people than soap and water does. BUT, alcohol is for use on hands that are not visibly soiled and not soiled with body fluids or protein (ie, after using the restroom). It kills germs, but it is not a cleaner. So, it can't clean those things off the skin to get to where the germs are.
Antibacterial soap or hand sanitizers that use Triclosan to kill germs are not recommended by Public Health/Infection Control. There are theories/evidence that they lead to the development of resistant organisms (those hard to kill germs). Triclosan kills germs in the same manner as many antibiotics, so use of products containing that have been thought to lead to antibiotics not working as well and there is some evidence to show this is the case.

Alcohol hand sanitizers can have a place in Food Service and are allowed in some states for specific purposes. (Not all states allow it).
But, there are many situations where they are not a good choice and should not be used.
Food Service workers often have wet or damp hands. Alcohol should not be used with wet or damp hands because the alcohol will get diluted and the full 'dose' of alcohol would not get to the hands.
Food service workers also often have protein based material on their hands (things like meat or poultry juices, etc). Alcohol doesn't work well in the presence of protein based material, so hands soiled with those should be washed.

 

[IMACM]

There was a bad bug going around down here and some say they got it from the parks. Hope everyone is feeling better!!!

 

[snyderla]

I have a disease that makes me susceptible to food borne illness, frequently I will eat the same things as others and be the only person ill. It has happened a few times at WDW, as well as other places. I usually begin symptoms within a couple of hours after eating and they usually last only a few hours, but that isn't the usual thing people think of when they say "food poisoning". Food borne illnesses are just as common as virus stomache illnesses. Handwashing is the best way to keep from getting sick. I work in healthcare and we have proper handwashing in-services every year. Our trainers use a black light and orange dye to make sure we didn't miss anything and you'd be surprised how many staff members have to go back and re-wash their hands due to all the orange dye that shows up under the light after they have supposedly washed!

There is a web site for the county health dept that shows the deficencies received at various WDW restaurants. DH checked it out a few times. I don't know the address, but google is your friend!