Thursday, October 11, 2007

DD's explosive night - a warning


Well Deb's came home from her trip to AC and brought me a wonderful pizza from my favorite award winning shop in Media, PA for me to feast upon.
Wonderful as always, however she didn't bring herself one since she had dined with her mom earlier in the day at the Plumstead Inn (26 W State St, Media, PA 19063) as she has often done. Now I've eaten dinner at the Plumstead several times and judge the food to be boringly mundane at best, however, this and a subsequent trip for DD would be much different... lets just say the local health department should be notified.


For the second time this year (and from eating at the same restaurant), I have had to watch my wonderful mate suffer from explosive diarrhea, retching, the dry heaves and a high fever for more than a day. Yup, you guessed it - your friend and my enemy - food poisoning!
I won't go into the fetid details suffice to say I have forced liquids and chicken broth down her throat, along with acetaminophen to reduce her (at one time) 103.1° fever. She is feeling somewhat better at this writing, missing only two days of work after her erstwhile vacation.


My advice to you should you decide to dine at the Plumstead Inn located in Media, PA - don't go for lunch and if you do, avoid foods that should be kept cold at all times such as cole slaw since it contains egg products that can spoil if left at room temperature for an extended time.
The general rule of thumb is to keep hot food above 140° and cold food below 42°..




'Nuff said

7 comments:

Anonymous said...

First, a grateful thank you to CJ for putting up with some messy sickness from me.
I seem to be on the mend, with only a fever and some aches.
CJ is obviously passionate about kitchen safety.
Second, although I don't feel sexy again yet, I'm sure I will soon enough.

Alfie said...

We were so sorry to read that Debs has been unwell. Get well soon.

Anonymous said...

hope you get well soon

CJ said...

Deb's be all better now - thanks for the words of encouragement!

Anonymous said...

Glad to hear that you are feeling better. I hope that you have eaten at that place for the last time.

Anonymous said...

I do think its only fair to point out that it really isn't food poisoning if she had a fever. That sounds more like a flu. With food poisoning there would be no fever just diarreha, vomiting, and stomach pain and of course feeling very weak and exhausted.
Still sucks no matter how you toss the dice! Glad to read further on that all is well again.

D

CJ said...

Anonymous, thank you for your comment.
The illnesses that most people commonly associate with food poisoning are Salmonellae, Staphylococcus aureus, Bacillus cereus and Escherichia coli which you are correct in stating do not cause fever as a symptom.
However in regards to Deb's illness, many people do not realize that there are many other forms.

Several common forms of food poisoning which cause the symptoms indicated (including fever) would be the following, which are both commonly transmitted by fecal contamination:

Viral -
Rotavirus: Causes moderate to severe illness with vomiting followed by watery diarrhea and fever.

Bacterial -
Shigella: Causes moderate to severe illness with fever, diarrhea containing blood or mucus or both, and the constant urge to have bowel movements.

Lesser known is Vibrio cholerae which causes mild to moderate illness with crampy diarrhea, headache, nausea, vomiting, and fever with chills, but is often associated with undercooked seafood.

Let this be lesson to all persons who work with food, either raw or cooked (even servers!): wash your hands after you use the toilet!