BEWARE OF FOOD!

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**************** NOTE - This is a Four Year Old Topic ************************

I was really sick on the southwest chief arriving Los Angeles on dec 8,2012. I'm blaming the food, but I don't know what . I was very sick al night throwing up, followed by really bad intestinal cramps and dizziness and weakness. I guess I will report it to Amtrak, as you are right, they should know
It never hurts to mention it to the LSA. If others got sick, I'm sure they'd report it as well, and the trend would alert the kitchen staff that something is amiss.
If it's just the one incident, then it's a bit easier to chalk it up to a stomach virus.
Regardless, I'm sorry you were ill for a good portion of your trip. I can't imagine how awful it would be to deal with a stomach bug or food poisoning while on a train. Being sick is always so much worse when you aren't home in your own bed.

Since the sickness was four years ago, I imagine she's recovered by now.
I think MOST of the recent posts were to the one posted yesterday by Cm.
 
Is bumping threads against the rules? It's actually not a bad idea to keep a single thread for a topic. Many forums do this. Why create a new thread for topic that already exists? For example, why not have just one thread for TIPPING? Save some bits and bytes. No need to send the forum off the "Digital Cliff". :)
 
Is bumping threads against the rules? It's actually not a bad idea to keep a single thread for a topic. Many forums do this. Why create a new thread for topic that already exists? For example, why not have just one thread for TIPPING? Save some bits and bytes. No need to send the forum off the "Digital Cliff". :)
As long as people don't try replying to ancient posts, there should be no problem.

As to a tipping thread, that's hard because most of us search for tip and you can't search, or at least not easily, for 3 letter words. :(
 
No, it's not "against the rules". It's just that (as in this thread) someone may post an answer (report it!) to a question asked 4 1/2 years ago. Many people post answers to questions asked years ago about a (then) current subject - without looking at the date of the post! I remember one such answer quoted a post from over 9 years before, as if it was yesterday!

It is always best to start a new thread then to revive a really old thread. If necessary, the mods can combine he two threads together.
 
Is bumping threads against the rules? It's actually not a bad idea to keep a single thread for a topic. Many forums do this. Why create a new thread for topic that already exists? For example, why not have just one thread for TIPPING? Save some bits and bytes. No need to send the forum off the "Digital Cliff". :)
My concern with having a single thread per topic is that we may have a thread about the Downeaster, such as one on another forum, with almost 3700 posts. Trying to wade through, even after searching for something specific, just is not practical.
 
One thing to keep in mind is that many times when a guest does revive an old topic, they have no idea that they've just done so. For example, the guest here could have done a Google search for "bad Amtrak food" or something similar. Odds are good that a topic or two from this forum would be on the first page of the results.

Said guest clicks on the link, makes their post, and never looks at the dates of the posts within the topic. They're looking to post/vent/rant or otherwise discuss the problem that they had. They may glance at some of the posts, but just like member who then respond to months old posts, the guest never looks at the dates of the posts.
 
My post was directed toward the more recent post. I realize the thread is four years old. It was in BIG RED TEXT. ;)
 
The subject line of this thread makes me smile.

I had some water go down the wrong pipe and spent a few minutes coughing...BEWARE OF DRINK!
 
BEWARE OF FOOD. Southwest Chief. December 15-17, 2012. My two children and myself are dealing with intestinal distress. Food or flu? Always hard to call. Just awareness.
 
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I am always wary about what I eat on a trip whether it is on the train or off. I like all the people on here that try and take up for Amtrak no matter what the problem. Stuff happens, even on your precious Amtrak. I had the meat loaf for lunch on the Meteor in Florida, simply because the sleeper host and waiters were eating it and recommended it. I though it was pretty bad stuff and belched it up all that night and the next day. But it did stay down thank goodness. I will make my own choices next time. My company cafeteria poisoned me twice when I was still working. Once was the spagheti and meat balls. It seems they made the meat out of the previous days uneaten hamburgers. I never got that again. I assume Amtrak's food is pre-prepared and all they do is heat it up. Failure to heat it properly was probably the problem. Also, I always tip the waiters because I don't want them to try and poison me at the next meal.
 
I think some threads could be bumped, like ones that constantly talk nabout the same topic, as long as it is still relevent. Many people quote ancient posts because there was nothing filling in.
 
BEWARE OF FOOD. Southwest Chief. December 15-17, 2012. My two children and myself are dealing with intestinal distress. Food or flu? Always hard to call. Just awareness.
Did you inform anyone while you were on the train? If other people reported it and everyone had the same thing, then they can remove that particular item.

Otherwise, the stomach flu IS going around like wildfire right now. I hope you recovered quickly. Many, many people I know have been sick with it during the past couple of weeks.
 
BEWARE OF FOOD. Southwest Chief. December 15-17, 2012. My two children and myself are dealing with intestinal distress. Food or flu? Always hard to call. Just awareness.
But you did not tell us if you all ate the exact same thing? I would think it was something other than Amtrak food unless you all ate the exact same things.
 
Unless you are sure ALL of you had the SAME EXACT food, and other pasengers got sick by eating that SAME EXACT Amtrak food, you can not say it was the Amtrak food! Maybe it was that sandwich or soda you brought from home instead! :excl:
 
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BEWARE OF FOOD. Southwest Chief. December 15-17, 2012. My two children and myself are dealing with intestinal distress. Food or flu? Always hard to call. Just awareness.
Did you inform anyone while you were on the train? If other people reported it and everyone had the same thing, then they can remove that particular item.

Otherwise, the stomach flu IS going around like wildfire right now. I hope you recovered quickly. Many, many people I know have been sick with it during the past couple of weeks.
Many people have food poisoning, too.
 
Which is why I recommended reporting it to the LSA. I realize it could have been food poisoning, and I sympathized with the poster. I'm not sure what I did wrong here...
 
Which is why I recommended reporting it to the LSA. I realize it could have been food poisoning, and I sympathized with the poster. I'm not sure what I did wrong here...
I wasn't criticizing you, I was just saying because some people I know got food poisoning instead of stomach flu. Both bad and both involve comtaminated food, you know.
 
Which is why I recommended reporting it to the LSA. I realize it could have been food poisoning, and I sympathized with the poster. I'm not sure what I did wrong here...
I wasn't criticizing you, I was just saying because some people I know got food poisoning instead of stomach flu. Both bad and both involve comtaminated food, you know.
For serious learning about food-borne disease please consider cdc.gov

There's a list of time from exposure - onset. And even a CME thing if you want to learn more about food-borne. And how to guess the most likely food problem -- there's a few dozen typical patterns.

The info about norovirus and cholera is worth learning.
 
Unless you are sure ALL of you had the SAME EXACT food, and other pasengers got sick by eating that SAME EXACT Amtrak food, you can not say it was the Amtrak food! Maybe it was that sandwich or soda you brought from home instead! :excl:
That is not actually correct. Some people have less tolerance to food issues than others. Just because someone else ate the same item and did not get sick does not mean that item was not the cause.

I had dinner on the SWC least summer that had me extremely "uncomfortable" all night and much of the next day. I don't think everyone who ate that meal felt the same way, but it positively was that dinner that did me in. It was the "Chef's Special." Maybe that is what was "special" about it.
 
Which is why I recommended reporting it to the LSA. I realize it could have been food poisoning, and I sympathized with the poster. I'm not sure what I did wrong here...
I wasn't criticizing you, I was just saying because some people I know got food poisoning instead of stomach flu. Both bad and both involve comtaminated food, you know.
:huh: REALLY! Stomach flu/bug involves contaminated food? Well, I'll be. Learn something new every day. :blink:
 
The stomach flu is caused by a virus. Food poisoning is caused by contaminated and/or improperly prepared/handled food. Additionally, some people (like me) are more sensitive to certain kinds of food and will get sick if they are unaware of the ingredients.

Regardless, I don't doubt the most recent poster may have had food poisoning since she and both of her kids had the exact same symptoms at the exact same time, but I do believe many people confuse sensitivities, lactose intolerance, fat intolerance (from gall bladder surgery), and stomach virii with "food poisoning". My boyfriend has issues every time he eats a large burrito from the local taquiera, but that doesn't mean he has food poisoning.
 
Please people. Don't confuse food poisoning with your own allergies, sensitivies, contact with bathroom doors, etc. If you're concerned, bring your own food. Amtrak does a great job within their pre-defined parameters. Bring your own food and enjoy the ride!
 
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