What To Do if You Suspect Food Poisoning Onboard a Cruise Ship
Common symptoms of food poisoning include fever, vomiting, diarrhea, dry mouth, dry throat, nausea, stomach cramps and an upset stomach. But, as the CDC notes, “[a]fter you swallow an unsafe (contaminated) food or drink, it may take hours or days to develop symptoms.” As a result, even if you don’t experience symptoms immediately after eating onboard a cruise ship, your symptoms could still be indicative of food poisoning. If you have any reason to suspect that you may be experiencing food poisoning onboard a cruise ship, you should:
- If possible, take photos of the food source from which you believe you got sick. Regardless of whether you are able to take photos, write down the name of the restaurant, the date and time you dined, the specific food or foods you ate, and the symptoms you experienced.
- Report your illness to a staff member immediately and visit the cruise ship’s medical facility for a diagnosis and treatment.
- Talk to your family members or other cruise passengers to find out if they also got sick after dining at one of the cruise ship’s restaurants.
- Follow the cruise ship doctor’s advice while you are onboard, and avoid doing anything that could make your condition worse (i.e. eating foods that can cause inflammation or exercising vigorously).
- Contact a cruise ship food poisoning lawyer to discuss filing a claim against the cruise line. If you have a claim, a lawyer may be able to help you recover compensation for your medical expenses, pain and suffering, and other losses.
