Gastroenteritis – most commonly described as an upset stomach – is an inflammatory disorder of the digestive stract. The condition may be contagious, which explains why members of the same family often come down with it, one after the other. The ailment encompasses a broad range of symptoms, from mild vomitting and diarrhea to more severe forms of these same symptoms. More often than not the culprit is a virus. Other causes of gastroenteritis include food poisoning (either from food or drink contamination or from eating a poisonous food), allergic reactions to food, and bacterial imbalance of the digestive tract. Taking antibiotics can provoke this latter condition. Well-known kinds of gastroenteritis include traveller’s diarrhea, salmonellosis, botulism and dysentery.