Five Precautions Against Food-borne Illness - Eat Without Fear!

Food is an emotional issue for many. People equate food with home, with comfort and, often, with safety. However, the issue of food-borne illness has become a very hot topic as we see stories almost daily about contaminated meat and even vegetables. It used to be that vegetarians and the like assumed they were safe from bacteria such as Listeria, Salmonella and E. Coli, but recent events have proven otherwise. Below are some simple precautions you can take to protect your food from contamination.

1. Buy the freshest. Check the "use by" dates on everything and be sure you will be able to use items by that time. While in most cases it is safe to consume items up to a week after the "use by" date, it is safest to toss out anything that has expired..

2. Everything in its place. Store all your items in the proper environment. Your refrigerator should be kept around 45 degrees F, with meats kept frozen until a day or two before you intend to use them. Defrosting meat should be kept on a plate or some other item that will keep the juices from contaminating other items in your refrigerator. Eggs and dairy should not be kept in the door as the temperature there is not stable. Frequent openings can cause door items to heat up, which can allow bacteria to grow.

3. Sanitation. Wash your food thoroughly and wash your hands thoroughly whenever you are handling food. Also be sure to wash your preparation surfaces and tools. Do not prepare raw meats on the same surface anything else will be prepared because the bacteria may remain on the surface and introduce bacteria into other items. Food can carry bacteria that you may transfer to other, unexpected things.

4. Turn up the heat. Cook meat, left-overs and eggs thoroughly and to the proper temperature. Most things should attain at least 165 degrees as taken by a meat thermometer. This will kill most bacteria present.

5. Keep cold things cold and hot things hot. Don't let your food sit out longer than an hour or two (at most) or even properly prepared and handled food can become contaminated. Delicate things like mayonnaise should be kept out as little as possible.

While these tips won't absolutely guarantee that you won't get sick if you are unlucky enough to encounter some bad food, but they will seriously reduce your chances of encountering it in the first place. The idea is to kill any bacteria that is there and to prevent it from growing.