Food Safety: Food Poisoning

You’ve just enjoyed a delicious meal of some of your favorite foods, and are basking in that satisfied-but- not-stuffed feeling as you relax with family or friends.

A few hours later you begin to feel weak and nauseous, perhaps accompanied with abdominal pain and a fever or dizziness.

Chances are you are suffering from food poisoning. And you are not alone. Tens of millions of food-borne disease cases occur each year in the United States, costing billions of dollars in medical care and lost productivity.

Most of these cases last less than 48 hours, although in extreme cases food poisoning can result in death. But nearly all food poisoning cases could be prevented through proper cooking and storage of foods and better hygiene, particularly hand washing.

How can food “poison� you? Bacteria is the most common cause, and a large amount of bacteria must be present in what is eaten in order to make someone ill. Raw foods often contain bacteria, but thorough cooking usually will destroy or reduce the bacteria to harmless levels.

Bacteria can flourish, however, when food is at temperatures between 41 and 140 degrees Fahrenheit. That is, in between when the food is cooked to when it is refrigerated. So, to prevent bacteria growth, it’s important that food is kept properly cold or hot.

Cross-contamination --- the transfer of harmful bacteria to food from other foods, objects or people -- is another source of food poisoning. Proper and frequent hand washing by those handling food will prevent cross-contamination.

Here are some other rules that can prevent most food poisoning cases:

• Wash your hands before, during, and after food preparation. Use soap and warm water and wash for 20 seconds. This is the most important safeguard against food poisoning.
• Clean cutting boards, utensils and anything else used to prepare food with hot, soapy water. Using a diluted bleach solution on cutting boards and countertops also will kill lingering bacteria.
• After handling raw meat, fish or poultry, do not reuse the same utensil or plate. Bacteria from the raw juices will contaminate other food.
• Wash all fruits and vegetables well before eating.
• Keep hot foods hot and cold foods cold. If food is allowed to remain at room temperature for two hours or longer, bacteria can multiply and cause food poisoning.
• Don't buy or use food from dented, bulging or rusted cans. When in doubt, throw it out -- don't even open it.
• When eating out, avoid rare and uncooked meat. Eat salad bar and deli items before they get warm.
• Do not eat any foods that appear, taste or smell unusual.
• Only drink milk or fruit juices that have been pasteurized (sterilized to kill harmful bacteria).