Illness



With the infamous guinea pig disease now a thing of The Sims past, Sims can now catch a few different diseases, each with their own symptoms and method of catching - they're contagious, too.

Guinea Pig Disease
This disease was introduced in Livin' Large. Sims can catch it if they are bitten by a guinea pig that has a dirty cage, or from other Sims who have been infected with it. Sims infected with it will sneeze and cough frequently, and their Comfort and Energy motives will decline. Infected Sims will die if not treated.

Treatment

 * 1) Keep the sick Sim(s) home from work or school, and try to keep their Comfort and Energy motives up.
 * 2) Buy the Forgotten Guinea Pig painting. It will clear the disease from the household after 16 Sim hours.
 * 3) If the Sim is an adult, have them use The "Concoctanation Station" chemistry set. If a Sim uses it when the disease is present on the lot, there is a chance that he or she will make a white potion, which will cure the disease. Additionally, there is a good chance that the Sim will make a blue potion which will restore three random motives. While this will not directly cure the disease, anything that keeps a sick Sim's motives up will help them recover from it.

Montezuma's Revenge
Also known as "Poopy Pants" (the name used by Maxis in the code), this disease was introduced in Vacation. It's a form of food poisoning, and Sims can get it from eating at buffet tables when their Hygiene is low. It will not kill a Sim, but is uncomfortable. Sims with this illness will have trouble keeping their Bladder meter full, and will spend plenty of time in the bathroom.

Treatment
The disease is not deadly, and will go away on its own. Try to keep the affected Sim's motives up.

Nervous Breakdown
Introduced in Superstar, this is not a disease per se. It will occur if a famous Sim has repeated failures in Studio Town. The Sim will enter a catatonic state and lose Comfort, Fun, Bladder and Fame points. A mention of it will appear in the tabloid.

Unleashed Mystery Illness
This was reportedly introduced in Unleashed. It was dubbed the "Mystery Illness" because its exact nature and origin was unknown. Its existence was inferred, but never officially acknowledged or confirmed, and reports of it spread around the Sims community. Reported symptoms are those of the Guinea Pig Disease, but it does not require the presence of a guinea pig. It could reportedly affect both humans and pets, and reported symptoms in pets include listlessness and an inability to maintain the Hunger motive.

It does not appear to exist as a separate entity, but may have been the result of a bug involving existing illnesses. What it is, and whether it exists at all, remains subject to dispute. Investigations by various hackers have discovered that there is no reference to disease in any of the files that come with Unleashed (see this thread at Simblesse Oblige), and that code which claims to cure the disease refers to a disease controller file which was included in Vacation, which actually contains code for Poopy Pants.

Woodworker's Disease
There have been rumors that a Sim who keeps operating the woodworking table in a room with no windows will get sick, or at least will develop a nasty cough; however, this has never been confirmed. An inspection of the crafting bench's file shows that there is no code for disease in it.

Morning sickness
Morning sickness almost* always happens when a Sim is pregnant and in the first trimester. It also has the same symptoms as food poisoning. If the Sim is a female and she didn't plan for a baby, or if it's a male Sim and he wasn't recently abducted, then it is most likely he/she just ate some spoiled food.

The only way guaranteed to prevent a Sim from getting morning sickness is to download a mod that will stop it from happening. Otherwise its intensity varies from Sim to Sim.

Food poisoning
There is a 5% chance any time a Sim eats spoiled or burnt food that the Sim will get food poisoning. Sims will suffer nausea (a sharp drop in comfort) diarrhea(a sharp drop in bladder) and will run to the toilet at regular intervals.

Cold
There is a 5% chance any time a Sim goes to work or school that the Sim will catch a cold. Obviously, Sims will suffer from coughing and sneezing fits causing a drop in comfort.

Flu
There is a chance that a Sim, in the presence of cockroaches, will catch the flu. The flu has all the symptoms of a cold with sharp drops in fun and energy as well.

When the Beaker household in Strangetown is first played, there will be cockroaches near the refrigerator. Both Loki and Nervous will go to stomp on them and will catch the flu. It is best to cancel out this action before they stomp on them.

Pneumonia
If the cold is not cured quickly it can turn into pneumonia. The pneumonia has all the symptoms of both the cold and the flu, as well as sharp and sudden drops in energy in which a Sim appears to nearly pass out. If energy drops low enough, the Sim will pass out.

Sims with pneumonia may die if not treated.

Mysterious disease
Sims can be infected with this when using the biotech station. The symptoms are random, and can be any of the above. It should be noted that this disease is highly contagious and can easily spread through the entire neighborhood in a matter of days.

Curing
The best cure for all illnesses is rest. Keep the ill Sim away from healthy Sims, and make them relax for the period of their illness, until a message appears saying they are cured. If the Sim is able to meditate, this will also help.

Medicine
The medicine made with the biotech station cuts down the resting time needed to be cured of a sickness. Players who do not have either FreeTime (with up-to-date patches) or Apartment Life will need to get a mod from More Awesome Than You! for the medicine to work properly.

Orange juice
If The Sims 2: Seasons is installed, drinking orange juice made from Tasty or Mouthwatering fruit will cure colds, or at least reduce the amount of time a Sim will need to rest.

Grandma's Comfort Soup
With The Sims 2: FreeTime installed, Sims with Family as their primary or secondary aspiration can achieve the aspiration benefit "Grandma's Comfort Soup". When eaten, it will cure any disease a Sim has. It is recommended to have AT LEAST one Family Sim in the household, whether it be the mom, butler (controllable), or Grandma, just in case one Sim has the "Unknown Virus" or any other small illness.

Grandma's Comfort Soup is the first benefit for the Family aspiration.

Passing it on
Not all illnesses are contagious and those that are become contagious at different rates. As food poisoning is an infection from only one source and morning sickness only affects pregnant Sims these are not contagious. The mysterious disease is more contagious than the flu and the flu is more contagious than the cold.

Death
If the flu, pneumonia, or a mysterious disease is not cured quickly enough, the Sim will die from illness (Children are taken away by a Social Worker before they get a chance to die). Toddlers and babies cannot get ill. The mysterious disease can kill a Sim in under 24 Sim hours (So it's possible for a child to die of the mysterious disease). You die of a cold after having the illness untreated for nine days.

The Sims 3
Unlike The Sims 2, there have been no conformities of death by sickness in the Sims 3, nor any contagious diseases.

Morning sickness
Morning sickness will always happen when a Sim is pregnant and in the first trimester. Sims will randomly get the Nauseous moodlet and eventually they will vomit.

Food poisoning
If a Sim eats spoiled or burned food will receive the Nauseous moodlet, and will vomit after several hours. They will then need a lot of rest. If this happens to kids, let them skip school.

Tiberium poisoning
Keeping Tiberium (radioactive rock) in a Sim's inventory for a while will give them Nauseous moodlet and cut their mood down.

Eating Meat
If a Vegetarian Sim eats meat, he/she will receive the Nauseous moodlet and will vomit after a while.

Plasma sickness
When a normal Sim drinks Plasma or eats any plasma-based products he/she will get the Nauseous moodlet and vomit after two hours. Also, having a vampire Sim with the vegetarian trait drink plasma from Sims will cause him/her to get the Nauseous moodlet and vomit after a while.