Food-borne Illness or foodborne disease

Foodborne illness (also referred to as foodborne disease or food poisoning) is any illness resulting
from the consumption of food that has been contaminated with chemicals, toxins or pathogens
(bacteria, viruses, parasites). This contamination can occur before, during and after food
preparation. A Classification of food-borne diseases is shown in figure. Here, all food-borne
diseases are subdivided into poisonings and infections.

Food-borne diseases

Poisonings Infections

Chemical poisonings Intoxications Enterotoxigenic Invasive

Sporulation Growth and lysis

Intestinal mucosa Systemic Other tissues

Poisonous plant Poisonous Microbial

tissues animal tissues intoxications

Algal toxins Mycotoxins Bacterial toxins

Enterotoxins Neurotoxins Interferes with

carbohydrate metabolism

Figure: Classification of food-borne diseases

[1]
A bacterial food intoxication therefore refers to food-borne illnesses caused by the presence of a
bacterial toxin formed in the food. A bacterial food infection refers to food-borne illnesses caused
by the entrance of bacteria into the body through ingestion of contaminated foods and the
reaction of the body to their presence or to their metabolites.

Table list some examples of bacteria responsible for food-borne intoxications and infections

Food-borne diseases: bacterial

Intoxications Infections

1. Staphylococcal intoxication (an enterotoxin 1. Salmonellosis (enterotoxin and cytotoxin of

produced by Staphylococcus aureus Salmonella spp.)

2. Botulism (a neurotoxin produced by 2. Clostridium perfringens illness (an enterotoxin

Clostridium botulinum released during sporulation of Clostridium
perfringens type A in the intestinal tract

3. Bacillus cereus gastroenteritis (an enterotoxin

released during lysis of Bacillus cereus in the
intestinal tract

4. Enteropathogenic Escherichia coli infection

(Several serotypes of E coli, some invasive and
some enterotoxigenic)

5. Others e.g. Yersiniosis, Shigellosis , Vibrio

parahaemolyticus

[2]