Sometimes, it is quite obvious where you got food poisoning from. If you and several of your friends eat at the same restaurant one night and all get sick, you can fairly easily deduce that the restaurant is responsible for your illness. However, if you are the only person you know who became ill, it might be harder to determine what the source of your food poisoning was. By working with public health officials and tracking your symptoms, an experienced Illinois food poisoning attorney can often help to identify the source of your illness. If you have recently experienced severe food poisoning and you are not sure where you got it, you should consult a lawyer.
Comparing the Timing of Symptoms and Type of Pathogen
One way to determine where you most likely got food poisoning from is to track the timing and onset of your symptoms. Most foodborne pathogens, like E. Coli, Norovirus, and Listeria follow a fairly predictable course when they infect a person. Some take days to set in after a person eats contaminated food, while others take effect within 30 minutes. If you know what type of foodborne pathogen you were sickened by, this can help your attorneys and public health officials alike determine the source.