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Family
Living
Healthy
Life Styles
Safe
Food Handling Practices
Bad
news: Foodborne diseases are estimated to cause about 76 million
illnesses ,325,000 hospitalizaitons and 5,000 deaths in the United
States each year,
More
bad news: Studies show that household members are repeatedly making
food-handling errors in their homes, which increases risk of foodborne
illnesses.
Some
of the culprits from FDA's "Bad Bug Book": http://www.cfsan.fda.gov/~mow/intro.htm
and fightbac's "10 least wanted"
http://www.fightbac.org/10least.cfm
Salmonella:
Most common cause of foodborne deaths. Responsible for millions
of cases of foodborne illness a year; Sources: raw and undercooked
eggs, undercooked poultry and meat, dairy products, seafood, fruits
and vegetables. Acute symptoms -- Nausea, vomiting, abdominal cramps,
minal diarrhea, fever, and headache.
E.coli O157:H7
A bacterium that can produce a deadly toxin and causes approximately
73,000 cases of foodborne illness each year in the U.S.; Sources:
meat, especially undercooked or raw hamburger, produce and raw milk.
The illness is characterized by severe cramping (abdominal pain)
and diarrhea which is initially watery but becomes grossly bloody.
Occasionally vomiting occurs.
Campylobacter
Most common bacterial cause of diarrhea in the United States;
Sources: raw and undercooked meat and poultry, raw milk and untreated
water
Good
news: There are four easy steps to assure the safe handling of foods.
- Wash
hands and surfaces often. Hands need to be washed under running
water for 20 seconds. Especially important after handling raw
meats, poultry, eggs or seafood. Wash hands after going to the
bathroom, changing diapers or handling pets before touching foods.
Using a 1% bleach solution (1 tablespoon of beach to 1 gallon
of water) on surfaces provides added protection against bacteria.
- Separate:
Don't cross-contaminate. Cross-contamination occurs when meats,
poultry and seafood come in contact with fresh or ready to eat
foods that will not be cooked. Store these foods on the bottom
shelf of the fregerator; use a different cutting board for raw
meats and another for salads and other ready to eat foods. Wash
cutting boards, knives and other utensils with hot soapy water
after they come in contact with raw meats.
- Cook
to proper temperatures. Foods
are properly cooked when heated for long enough time and high
enough temperature to kill the harmful bacteria. Make sure foods
are thoroughly cooked (no cool spots) and use a meat thermometer
to measure internal temperature so meats and poultry. Bring sauces,
soups and gravey to a boil when reheating and heat other leftovers
to 65 degrees F.
- Chill:
Refrigerate Promptly. The danger zone for the rapid growth
of bacteria is between 40 and 120 degrees F. Most harmful bacteria
will not multiply at cold temperatures-- 40 degrees and under
for the refrigerator and 0 or under for the freezer. The general
rule is to refrigerate or freeze foods and leftovers withing two
hours--the two hour rule.
Bulletin:
"You Can Prevent Foodborne Illness" ($1 at the WSU Stevens
County Extension Office)
Web
resources:
Partnership
for Food Safety Education: www.fightbac.org
FDA
Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition:
www.cfsan.fda.gov
WSU
Food Safety Extension Service: foodsafety.wsu.edu
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