What is ‘fried rice syndrome’? Health experts warn against eating food left out at room temperature

Health experts are using TikTok to share information on the proper way to store leftovers and warn against the dangers of “fried rice syndrome.”

Dozens of videos describing fried rice syndrome went viral after a 2008 case report resurfaced on the social media platform. The report — published in the journal Microbial Pathogenesis — details the case of a 20-year-old man who died hours after eating leftover spaghetti stored at room temperature for five days. Less than an hour after consuming the spaghetti, the man experienced abdominal pain, headache, nausea and diarrhea.

The meal was contaminated with bacillus cereus, a life-threatening bacteria that can grow on foods, most commonly pastas or rice, when they are not refrigerated. These bacteria grow as a spore during the cooking process but will only grow into full bacteria if kept at room temperature, Lawrence Goodridge, professor of food safety at University of Guelph, explained to People.

“When they grow in the food, they produce toxins, ones that can make us vomit or have diarrhea. If you eat that food, then you get sick,” Goodridge told People.

“Most people who eat the food within half an hour to five or six hours will get sick,” he added. “That illness will last for about 24 hours. It’s really only in a small percentage of cases that’ll be more severe, where one can lead to people can have amputations or death, as in this case that’s on TikTok.”

Sports dietitian Kyndall Weir shared an experience she had with an athlete who ate the same pizza over the course of a week without ever refrigerating the leftovers.

“Here is why this is dangerous,” Weir says in the TikTok clip. “If something is supposed to be refrigerated and it reaches above 40 degrees, bacteria can start to grow. On the other hand, something that is supposed to be hot, like that rice that was cooked, cools down below 140 degrees Farenheit, that is also in the temperature danger zone.”

“That bacteria growth can make you ill.”

What leftover foods need to be refrigerated?

Once food has been safely cooked, it should be properly stored and refrigerated within two hours, otherwise it is not safe to eat. Cold foods should also be thrown out if left sitting at room temperature for two hours.

“Bacteria grow rapidly between the temperatures of 40 and 140 degrees Fahrenheit. After food is safely cooked, hot food must be kept hot at 140 degrees or warmer to prevent bacterial growth. Within two hours of cooking food or after it is removed from an appliance keeping it warm, leftovers must be refrigerated. Throw away all perishable foods that have been left in room temperature for more than two hours,” reports the USDA.

Starchy foods like pastas, noodles, rice and other cooked meals must be properly refrigerated to prevent fried rice syndrome.

“Do not leave starchy foods like rice, pasta or potatoes out at room temperature,” Dr. Shazma Mithani, an ER doctor, explained in a TikTok video. “There’s a very specific bacteria that thrives in this environment and produces a toxin that is heat stable, meaning that even when you reheat the food it does not kill that toxin.”

Symptoms of food poisoning

Fried rice syndrome is a form of food poisoning. Individuals suffering from food poisoning will experience a range of symptoms, including (per the Mayo Clinic):

• Vomiting.

• Diarrhea.

• Upset stomach.

• Stomach pain and/or cramps.

• Fever.

• Headache.

• Blood in stool.

If the food poisoning affected the nervous systems, these severe, less common symptoms may occur:

• Blurred vision.

• Trouble swallowing.

• Tingling and/or numbness of skin.

• Weakness.

• Loss of movement in limbs.

• Changes in sound of the voice.

Food poisoning affects an estimated 1 in 6 Americans, or 48 million people, every year, per the CDC. About 3,000 people die from foodborne diseases each year.