How long does food poisoning last?

According to WebMD, symptoms of food poisoning can last between one day to several months, depending on the cause. Symptoms can start within 1 hour to up to 10 days after ingestion of the causative agent. Typical symptoms of food poisoning include nausea, vomiting and diarrhea.

The Centers for Disease Control reports that one out of six Americans contracts food poisoning each year. More than 250 different causes of food-borne poisoning have been identified. Most are caused by infectious organisms, such as bacteria. Some are caused by toxins in the food, such as in the case of poisonous mushrooms. The most common cause of food-borne illness is the norovirus.