What To Do If You Think You Have Food Poisoning

Janet Fletcher of the SF Gate says if you believe you have been sickened by a restaurant meal, health authorities advise alerting the establishment and calling the health department of the county where the restaurant is located; see accompaying phone numbers. Most common illnesses: Salmonella, staphylococcus, campylobacter, E. coli 0157:H7

General symptoms: Nausea, vomiting, diarrhea; sometimes headache, muscle cramps and abdominal cramps. Staph symptoms come on rapidly, but generally the time elapsed between ingestion and illness is 24 to 72 hours.

To file a report: Have the following information on hand to quicken the process:

-- Restaurant name and location

-- Date and time of your visit

-- A list of things you ate at the restaurant

-- When you began to feel ill and which symptoms came first

-- A 24- to 48-hour history of all the food you've eaten, and where

-- Names of people in your party, the foods they ate, and whether they were sick or not