A healthy body demands consumption of healthy and safe food throughout lifetime. Food borne illnesses that occur due to agents coming into contact with the body through intake of food are usually either transferable or toxic in nature. While you supposedly may not be able to remove the naturally occurring toxins, pollutants and metals in food, eliminating or avoiding food contamination can certainly be done at your end. This can largely prevent the occurrence of food borne illnesses and keep you and your family in the pink of your health. Here’re some preventive measures to stay safe against food borne diseases.
Complexity Level: Moderate
Resources Required:
1.Refrigerator
2.soap/sanitizer
3.Gloves
4.Warm water
5.Food thermometer (optional)
Instructions:
1. The basics in cooking and handling food: The way of cooking and treating food can make much difference between a healthy food and an unhealthy one. While treating non-vegetarian food items like meat, it is necessary to wash hands thoroughly (under nails and in between fingers) after you have finished with it. Preferably, use warm water and a sanitizer to get rid of all unwanted microorganisms. A right temperature is important to kill the harmful microorganisms present inside raw food items. Improper cooking may leave the bacteria and viruses in the food to potentially endanger your health. Continuous stirring would ensure better cooking. You can use separate utensils for vegetarian and non-vegetarian food items to avoid cross-contamination. Cold food items should be adequately refrigerated and used as per instructions. Infected or bruised hands can be a potential source of harmful bacteria. Use gloves if needed.
2. Get food from a reliable source: Obtain your food items from a safe and reliable source. This can bring a great difference in your cooking including the taste. Do not obtain food from unhealthy or unknown sources. Even when eating out, opt for known outlets or which are seemingly clean and hygienic.
3. The time gap between preparation and consumption: In a family, eating timings may vary as per individual schedules. While it is best to cook food and consume immediately when it is fresh with minimum contamination level, sometimes a gap between actual consumption of food and its cooking becomes unavoidable. The raw food should be separated from the cooked one to reduce probability of contamination. Reheating should be done at high temperatures, around 74 degree Celsius. Liquids need boiling before serving.
4. Cleanliness at all stages is a must: Water is probably the best tool to your rescue. Wash fruits and vegetables with strong flushes to get rid of microorganisms. Use clean utensils for cooking and storing. Your kitchen supposedly should be the cleanest of all the places in the house. Keep other surfaces, such as faucets and working slabs, clean by washing with soap and hot water. Pets, household cleaners, and other chemicals need to be kept away from food. Being clean is the best way to avoid food borne illnesses and is not much demanding when done on a regular basis.
5. Storage is important: More of the food is stored than consumed at a time. Improper storage can make food unhygienic and harmful for consumption. Leftover food should be consumed within three days. Cooked food needs refrigeration within two hours of cooking as bacteria multiply quickly at room temperature. Poultry, fish, meat, etc. are to be frozen within two days of purchase and consumed as fresh as possible. When defrosting your refrigerator, the food can be kept tightly wrapped so that it does not defrost and drips all over to contaminate other food items. Do not thaw meat by putting in the open air as it may breed germs. Instead, use water flush.
Frequently Asked Questions:
1. What are the symptoms of food borne illnesses?
Largely, food borne illnesses show through intestinal flu lasting for few hours or even extend to some days. A person suffering from such illnesses can complain of nausea, vomiting, abdominal cramps, fever, or diarrhea which may be accompanied by blood and dehydration.
2. What are the risk factors of food borne illnesses?
While food borne illnesses can affect anyone, people with low immunity and mature age are found to be affected more. Young children and pregnant women are potentially at a greater risk due to reduced immunity. Pregnant women need to be extra cautious as the fetus carried inside their womb can be harmed.
Quick Tips:
•Raw eggs can contain toxic bacteria.
•Eggs in cookie dough should be avoided to prevent food borne illnesses.
Things To Watch Out For:
•Be extra careful when you suffer from any infection. You may transfer the bacteria/virus through the apron or cloth towel.
•The food color may be deceptive.
•Use a food thermometer to check the temperature.
