In a recent episode of her podcast “MeSsy,” actress Christina Applegate opened up about the terrifying health issues she faced after unknowingly ingesting fecal matter from a contaminated salad she ordered from a restaurant she had been going to for 15 years. In this article we talk about What Happened When Christina Applegate Ate a Tainted Salad.
It started when Applegate, who has multiple sclerosis (MS), contracted COVID-19 from a friend. She developed long-term COVID which led to chest infections and heart palpitations. Just as she was recovering, Applegate explains that she was diagnosed with sapovirus, a virus that causes acute gastroenteritis, after doing a stool test.
Sapoviruses are transmitted through the fecal-oral route, meaning Applegate had ingested contaminated feces from her takeout salad order. She believes the contamination occurred at the restaurant she had trusted for over a decade.
Immediate Health Impacts
After contracting sapovirus, Applegate described suddenly waking up “at three o’clock in the morning in a pool of s—.” She was unable to control her bowels and was “pissing out of my a– for a few days.”
The extreme gastrointestinal distress left Applegate feeling “so dizzy” and sick that she “couldn’t eat” or do anything. As she was already dealing with mobility issues from her MS, trying to change her soiled sheets at 3 AM proved extremely challenging.
Ongoing Incontinence Issues
Sadly, Applegate shared that this traumatic incident left her with lasting urinary incontinence issues. She now has to wear adult diapers regularly as her “body is malfunctioning.”
Applegate expressed frustration over the accessibility and design of incontinence products, stating the “adult diapers are a blush pink usually. And they usually have some sort of bow or floral design along the pelvic area.” Clearly these products are not optimized for comfort, confidence or discretion.
Her co-host Jamie-Lynn Sigler, who also lives with MS, agreed that having to wear diapers takes a huge toll both physically and emotionally. Neither woman feels the products available make them “feel sexy” or ready to take on the day.
Coping With Health Issues
Applegate and Sigler’s candid podcast episode highlights the everyday realities of coping with chronic illness that often go unspoken. Incontinence can be incredibly difficult and isolating to deal with on top of mobility impairments from conditions like MS.
Yet both women show immense resilience in the face of adversity, pushing through symptoms most people cannot imagine to spread awareness and support others going through similar struggles. They emphasize that the podcast is not about fixating on their diagnoses, but rather finding the inner strength to persevere when “facing something hard.”
By shedding light on these deeply personal health battles, Applegate and Sigler are helping to de-stigmatize taboo topics related to illness and disability. They demonstrate that strength comes in many forms – including radical vulnerability. I sincerely hope you find this “What Happened When Christina Applegate Ate a Tainted Salad?” article helpful.
