# Conundrum: how to make yourself eat after food poisoning... **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [November 2, 2010, 6:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/conundrum-how-to-make-yourself-eat-after-food-poisoning/559240 "2010-11-02T18:33:30Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Ogre](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/ecb155/32.png) [@Ogre](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ogre)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2010, 6:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/conundrum-how-to-make-yourself-eat-after-food-poisoning/559240/1 "2010-11-02T18:33:30Z")
Ate a bad spinach salad Sunday afternoon, spent the wee hours, um, unpleasantly. Could barely eat anything yesterday. I’m hungry as hell today, with no sign of infection, but the thought of food still makes me queasy. We have no chicken soup, and even something as mild and inoffensive as oatmeal makes me think of terrible, terrible agony. Between this and my recent hospitalization due to dehydration, I’m beginning to think the universe has decided it can do without my continued presence. ---
**Author:** ![tdn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/94ad74/32.png) [@tdn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tdn)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2010, 6:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/conundrum-how-to-make-yourself-eat-after-food-poisoning/559240/2 "2010-11-02T18:38:54Z")
I haven’t had food poisoning in many years, but I’ve called in sick twice recently because of stomach problems. Saltines and ginger ale, my friend. Have plenty on hand. When you’re able to down an entire sleeve of saltines in one sitting, you’re cured. ---
**Author:** ![ZipperJJ](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zipperjj/32/211_2.png) [@ZipperJJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZipperJJ)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2010, 7:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/conundrum-how-to-make-yourself-eat-after-food-poisoning/559240/3 "2010-11-02T19:05:51Z")
Toast, man. Drown your sorrows in toast. If you want to make it savory, add butter. If you want sweet, add jam. ---
**Author:** ![Leaffan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leaffan/32/299_2.png) [@Leaffan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaffan)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2010, 7:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/conundrum-how-to-make-yourself-eat-after-food-poisoning/559240/4 "2010-11-02T19:16:03Z")
Gatorade. Boiled eggs, mashed and mixed with a bit of butter. Open-faced grilled cheese. (Sliced cheddar broiled on top of bread till bubbly.) These are a few of my favourite (recuperation) things. ---
**Author:** ![elelle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/f0a364/32.png) [@elelle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elelle)\ **Post date:** [November 3, 2010, 3:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/conundrum-how-to-make-yourself-eat-after-food-poisoning/559240/5 "2010-11-03T03:00:51Z")
Honestly, and plantwise, go for straight Ginger root, grated.And Garlic, the same. Those two are great with stomach invader troubles. ---
**Author:** ![Freudian\_Slit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/5daacb/32.png) [@Freudian\_Slit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Freudian_Slit)\ **Post date:** [November 3, 2010, 3:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/conundrum-how-to-make-yourself-eat-after-food-poisoning/559240/6 "2010-11-03T03:02:41Z")
Dry toast and ginger ale. Feel better! ---
**Author:** ![Nava](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/da6949/32.png) [@Nava](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nava)\ **Post date:** [November 3, 2010, 7:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/conundrum-how-to-make-yourself-eat-after-food-poisoning/559240/7 "2010-11-03T07:17:43Z")
I have conversations with my stomach. _Mental image of soup_ _Stomach turns flip-flops_ OK, not soup. _Mental image of Golden apple_ _Stomach feels queasi-ish_ _Mental image of very sloooowly eating a Golden apple_ _ok_ Proceed to eat a Golden apple very sloooowly. ---
**Author:** ![aruvqan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aruvqan/32/2891_2.png) [@aruvqan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aruvqan)\ **Post date:** [November 3, 2010, 7:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/conundrum-how-to-make-yourself-eat-after-food-poisoning/559240/8 "2010-11-03T07:56:12Z")
I keep saltines, candied ginger, ginger altoids and minute rice around. First I try nibbling a piece of candied ginger, or a ginger altoid. If that helps, I go for a few saltines. If I can manage saltines and water, I make up a few tablespoons of instant rice with plain water. If I can keep that down, Ill make up a bowl of instant rice with chicken broth, with a bit of extra broth to make it a bit soupy. If that works, Ill graduate to rice congee, which is a traditional chinese breakfast/invalid food. [start with a whole dead cleaned chicken. Pop into a large pot with enough water to cover, a couple of carrots, stalks of celery, a coarsley chopped onion and a few cloves of garlic. Simmer for about an hour. When the chicken is cooked, remove the chicken carcass and veggies. Toss the veggies into the trash, and pull the meat off the chicken and reserve. Make a batch of rice with the chicken broth, reserving the rest of the broth. Turf the rice, more broth, some fresh grated ginger, chopped garlic to taste, a large onion chopped finely and the chopped chicken meat into a pot and simmer until the rice is starting to dissolve into gruel. My auntie would also use some black cardamom, but I cheat and add 5 spice powder for a bit of kick, but you can leave it out if you like. This stuff freezes beautifully, and I normally have a few single serving tubs of it lurking in the freezer at any given time] ---
**Author:** ![Rachellelogram](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rachellelogram/32/8689_2.png) [@Rachellelogram](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rachellelogram)\ **Post date:** [November 3, 2010, 9:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/conundrum-how-to-make-yourself-eat-after-food-poisoning/559240/9 "2010-11-03T09:47:43Z")
> [@aruvqan](#): > > start with a whole dead cleaned chicken Goodness, I was going to try it with a dirtied chicken! Great advice. I’m just having fun with you 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Tim\_T-Bonham.net](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/46a35a/32.png) [@Tim\_T-Bonham.net](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tim_T-Bonham.net)\ **Post date:** [November 3, 2010, 10:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/conundrum-how-to-make-yourself-eat-after-food-poisoning/559240/10 "2010-11-03T10:37:19Z")
Go to the most basic: bread and water. If it sounds better to you, toast the bread and add butter. Or jam. Or peanut butter. Keep going until you find something that appeals to you. Maybe substitute for the bread something like saltine crackers or rusks. For the water, you can substitute some fluid that is mostly water. Like milk. Try soaking the bread in warm milk. Or replace it with some mild soda pop, like ginger ale or 7-up. Generally, keep to real bland, neutral tasting foods. They seem to be easier to keep down. Also, avoid anything like what you think caused the food poisoning. It was spinach? So avoid salads, leafy greens, maybe even raw fruits & vegetables for a while. It was tune casserole? Avoid casseroles, or anything with tuna, or even any fish for a while. (This may be just psychosomatic, but it has helped me & some friends after food poisoning.) ---
**Author:** ![tdn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/94ad74/32.png) [@tdn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tdn)\ **Post date:** [November 3, 2010, 12:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/conundrum-how-to-make-yourself-eat-after-food-poisoning/559240/11 "2010-11-03T12:45:19Z")
> [@aruvqan](#): > > [start with a whole dead cleaned chicken. Pop into a large pot with enough water to cover, a couple of carrots, stalks of celery, a coarsley chopped onion and a few cloves of garlic. Simmer for about an hour. When the chicken is cooked, remove the chicken carcass and veggies. Toss the veggies into the trash, and pull the meat off the chicken and reserve. Make a batch of rice with the chicken broth, reserving the rest of the broth. Turf the rice, more broth, some fresh grated ginger, chopped garlic to taste, a large onion chopped finely and the chopped chicken meat into a pot and simmer until the rice is starting to dissolve into gruel. My auntie would also use some black cardamom, but I cheat and add 5 spice powder for a bit of kick, but you can leave it out if you like. This stuff freezes beautifully, and I normally have a few single serving tubs of it lurking in the freezer at any given time] Thanks for the recipe, but if I had read this while suffering a stomach ailment, it would have sent me retching. As it is, though, it sounds wonderful. ---
**Author:** ![Paintcharge](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/paintcharge/32/7946_2.png) [@Paintcharge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Paintcharge)\ **Post date:** [November 3, 2010, 1:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/conundrum-how-to-make-yourself-eat-after-food-poisoning/559240/12 "2010-11-03T13:52:00Z")
> [@aruvqan](#): > > [start with a whole dead cleaned chicken. Pop into a large pot with enough water to cover, a couple of carrots, stalks of celery, a coarsley chopped onion and a few cloves of garlic. Simmer for about an hour. When the chicken is cooked, remove the chicken carcass and veggies. Toss the veggies into the trash, and pull the meat off the chicken and reserve. Make a batch of rice with the chicken broth, reserving the rest of the broth. Turf the rice, more broth, some fresh grated ginger, chopped garlic to taste, a large onion chopped finely and the chopped chicken meat into a pot and simmer until the rice is starting to dissolve into gruel. My auntie would also use some black cardamom, but I cheat and add 5 spice powder for a bit of kick, but you can leave it out if you like. This stuff freezes beautifully, and I normally have a few single serving tubs of it lurking in the freezer at any given time] That sounds great, but what does “turf the rice” mean? ---
**Author:** ![Markxxx](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/5daacb/32.png) [@Markxxx](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Markxxx)\ **Post date:** [November 3, 2010, 2:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/conundrum-how-to-make-yourself-eat-after-food-poisoning/559240/13 "2010-11-03T14:28:27Z")
Well don’t eat. Seriously, you’ll eat when you’re hungry and a few days without food ain’t gonna kill you. Americans and people in other Western nations think missing a meal is somehow tragic. It’s gonna take 20 or 30 days without food to kill you, maybe even longer. By some gatorade and drink that and LOTS of water. The more the better. It’s nearly impossible to OD on water, if you have normal kidneys. (yes, I know it’s possible to OD on water but you really have to force yourself and not use the restroom). Missing a few days of food isn’t going to harm you in the least so long as you drink enough water or gatorade. By then you’ll be hungry enough to eat again. ---
**Author:** ![purplehorseshoe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/purplehorseshoe/32/2996_2.png) [@purplehorseshoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/purplehorseshoe)\ **Post date:** [November 3, 2010, 3:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/conundrum-how-to-make-yourself-eat-after-food-poisoning/559240/14 "2010-11-03T15:47:11Z")
I’m gonna have to disagree with **Marxxx,** though what he said may very well work for him. At least, for me personally, not eating for a long period of time leads to very low blood sugar, which makes me … nauseous. Which is counter-productive for someone who’s trying to recuperate and feel better. Also, someone who had to be hospitalized for dehydration might not want or be able to drink “LOTS of water.” Especially with an irritated stomach. (Sometimes if I’m queasy, just drinking too much water will send me back over the edge. All that weight sloshing around, I guess.) OP, mint tea is a well-known stomach-soother. So’s chamomile, if you have any around. Plain black tea on a totally-empty stomach is often a bad idea, though - too alkaline or something. You don’t live somewhere that legalized medicinal marijuana, by the way, do you? If it’s good enough for cancer and AIDS patients, it’s good enough to counteract bad spinach! ---
**Author:** ![Freudian\_Slit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/5daacb/32.png) [@Freudian\_Slit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Freudian_Slit)\ **Post date:** [November 3, 2010, 3:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/conundrum-how-to-make-yourself-eat-after-food-poisoning/559240/15 "2010-11-03T15:50:00Z")
Same here, **purplehorseshoe**. If I go too long without eating, I feel gross and headachey and then that lasts for several days, so not eating is a really bad thing for me. ---
**Author:** ![Gestalt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/90ced4/32.png) [@Gestalt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gestalt)\ **Post date:** [November 3, 2010, 4:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/conundrum-how-to-make-yourself-eat-after-food-poisoning/559240/16 "2010-11-03T16:12:58Z")
Yeah . . . a few days without food sounds a bit extreme. True, it won’t kill you, but I think even the poorest of people in the world would find 4 days with no food to be difficult. Also, it could really screw up your metabolism for the next week, if your body goes for 100+ hours without any calories. ---
**Author:** ![Campion](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/4491bb/32.png) [@Campion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Campion)\ **Post date:** [November 3, 2010, 5:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/conundrum-how-to-make-yourself-eat-after-food-poisoning/559240/17 "2010-11-03T17:32:39Z")
Doesn’t anyone else do BRAT? Bananas, rice, applesauce, toast. I know it’s not fashionable anymore, but honestly when I’ve had food poisoning or whatever, toast and applesauce usually are my go to foods when I’m ready to eat again. Bland, no dairy to mess you up, and it you’re running down south, applesauce binds a bit so it could help. Sorry for what you’re going through. But try a couple bites of dry toast, and if you can keep that down for an hour or two, you’re probably good to go. ---
**Author:** ![sitchensis](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sitchensis/32/4892_2.png) [@sitchensis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sitchensis)\ **Post date:** [November 3, 2010, 5:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/conundrum-how-to-make-yourself-eat-after-food-poisoning/559240/18 "2010-11-03T17:44:15Z")
Top Ramen and a big glass of 7-up mixed with Gatoraid ---
**Author:** ![aruvqan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aruvqan/32/2891_2.png) [@aruvqan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aruvqan)\ **Post date:** [November 3, 2010, 6:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/conundrum-how-to-make-yourself-eat-after-food-poisoning/559240/19 "2010-11-03T18:01:44Z")
> [@rachelellogram](#): > > Goodness, I was going to try it with a dirtied chicken! > > Great advice. I’m just having fun with you 🙂 =] I did have someone go to a chinese market and get the proper [silkie](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Silkie) to make it with, and tossed it in head, feet guts and all. I prefer a standard soup hen myself, older tough hens respond nicely to being simmered into soup =) ---
**Author:** ![Annie-Xmas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecc23a/32.png) [@Annie-Xmas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annie-Xmas)\ **Post date:** [November 3, 2010, 6:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/conundrum-how-to-make-yourself-eat-after-food-poisoning/559240/20 "2010-11-03T18:03:44Z")
My last bout of foodpoisoning, I survived nicely on nothing but tea for two days. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/conundrum-how-to-make-yourself-eat-after-food-poisoning/559240.md?page=2)