Salmonella Incubation Period

With all of the recent intense media coverage about certain Peanut Butter products being tainted with Salmonella, I wanted to find out a little bit about Salmonella's incubation and treatments.

From a Cornell Press Release:

Once Salmonella has been ingested, the "incubation time" or period from ingestion until the first symptoms of illness occur ranges from 12 to 72 hours. The time to illness may vary depending on many things such as the host's overall fitness and age, the amount and serotype of Salmonella ingested (with some serotypes as few as 20 cells), and the presence of various "stress" factors such as whether the person is undernourished, etc.

Salmonella symptoms are similar to other food poisoning: diarrhea, cramps, vomiting, etc. According to the Mayo Clinic, there's no reliable treatment for Salmonella. Treatment involves antibiotics, fluid replacement, and avoiding milk products to alleviate abdominal pains. These treatments are usually for people with weakened immune systems and immuno-compromised people.

For healthy people, the symptoms "subside within several days to two weeks" without treatment.

Mayo Clinic - Salmonella Infection: Treatments and Drugs