More than 200 students have been hospitalized after contracting food poisoning at their high school in northwest China's Shaanxi Province on Monday.

The 223 students were treated in local hospitals and all are instable condition, according to local government on Tuesday.

Students of Dianshi Town High School began reporting symptoms of headache, stomachache and vomiting after they had lunch at their school on Monday. All the affected students were immediately sent to hospital.

The high school has 921 students. They had lunch around 11:00 AM Monday and began reporting symptoms two hours later.

Local sanitation and epidemic prevention and disease control departments have taken sample food for testing.

(Xinhua News Agency September 19, 2006)