Bacterial gastroenteritis is an inflammation of the stomach and intestines caused by bacteria.

It can affect a person or a group of persons who shares or eats the same contaminated food such as eating at picnics, school canteen, party, restaurants, or simple a family sharing a meal with bacerial constamination.

There are several kinds of bacteria that usually are culprits of gastroenteritis. They include the following:

* Campylobacter jejuni (Campylobacter enteritis)
* Clostridium
* E. coli (E. coli enteritis)
* Salmonella (Salmonella enteritis)
* Shigella (Shigella enteritis)
* Staphylococcus
* Yersinia

I will not give details on what each of these does. Googling them up will help.

Each of these bacteria have different symptoms but all of them results in diarrhea. Some symptoms can be abdominal cramps or pain, bloody stools, a loss of appetite, and nausea that results in vomiting.

Usually, if you have gastroenteristis, you will recover from these types within a couple of days.

It is recommeded that you do the following:

1. Don’t eat solid foods until the diarrhea has passed, and avoid dairy products, which can make diarrhea worse (due to a temporary state of lactose intolerance).
2. Drink any fluid (except milk or caffeinated beverages) to replace fluids lost by diarrhea and vomiting.
3. Give children an electrolyte solution sold in drugstores. See also: Diarrhea in children

In severe cases, you should contact a physician. I have listed below some of the cases wherein you have to do this.

* You have blood or pus in your stools, or your stool is black
* You have abdominal pain that does not go away after a bowel movement
* You have symptoms of dehydration (thirst, dizziness, light-headedness)
* You have a fever above 101°F, or your child has a fever above 100.4°F, along with diarrhea
* You have recently traveled to a foreign country and developed diarrhea
* Your diarrhea does not get better in 5 days (2 days for an infant or child), or gets worse
* Your child has been vomiting for more than 12 hours (in a newborn under 3 months you should call as soon as vomiting or diarrhea begins)

AS a general rule, always practice proper sanitary and handling of food. Good preparation is a must.