Food Poisoning Myths and Facts

According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, over 48 million people get sick, 128,000 are hospitalized and 3,000 die from foodborne illnesses annually across the United States.

1. "If it tastes okay, it's safe to eat"

Just because it smells or tastes okay, doesn’t mean it’s not spoiled or contaminated.

Foodborne illness-causing viruses and bacteria do not cause symptoms right away after making their way into your system.

It can take two to three days to a few weeks before symptoms manifest.

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2. “Do not put hot food in the fridge.”Do you sometimes wait it out

and letting your food cool

before storing them in the

refrigerator? Well, here’s the

thing: you don’t have to. Don’t leave food at room temperature for too

long. Bacteria Growth Danger Zone: 40 to 140

degrees Fahrenheit

Refrigerate food within two hours of cookingDivide a large amount of food you’ve cooked

into smaller portions before taking them to the fridge to cool them faster.

Ensure that your refrigerator’s

temp is 40 degrees

Fahrenheit. Check with a kitchen thermometer.

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3. “Food from the supermarket is safe.”

One only needs to recall news of FDA and USDA recalls to get an idea of how much of food on the supermarket shelves may be contaminated.

Based on a recent report from Stericycle ExpertRecall, food recalls by the USDA and FDA have doubled in Q3 of 2013.

Most of the food units recalled have strains of E.Coli, Salmonella and Listeria.

However, the top cause of the recall is the presence of allergens in the food item.

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4. “Food cooked at home is always safe.”

If you’re not careful enough, you can spread foodborne illness-bacteria more than prevent it.

Foodsafety.gov recommends these four golden rules of food safety to be observed, even when preparing food at home:

Clean. Wash your hands with warm soapy water for 20 seconds before and after handling food.

Separate. Avoid cross-contamination by keeping raw food and cook food separate. Do not reuse chopping boards and utensils on raw and cooked produce without washing them at every use.

Cook food to the recommended internal temperature (at least 165 degrees Fahrenheit). Use a food thermometer to check the internal temperature of meat and poultry just to be sure.

Chill. Refrigerate food within 2 hours of cooking. Store foods in the fridge at 40 degrees Fahrenheit or colder.

Foodsafety.gov

Sources: Alice Henneman and Joyce Jenssen. (2011). Food Safety: What You Don't Know Can't Hurt You. Retrieved on December 3, 2013 from http://www.slideshare.net/alicehenneman/food-safety-myths

Erica Sagon. (2010). Five Food Safety Myths Debunked. Retrieved on December 3, 2013 from http://www.sheknows.com/food-and-recipes/articles/818059/5-food-safety-myths-debunked

Kathleen M. Zelman. (2008). 9 Food Poisoning Myths. Retrieved on December 3, 2013 from http://www.webmd.com/food-recipes/food-poisoning/features/9-food-poisoning-myths

Zoe Cormier. (2011). 4 Myths About Food Poisoning Busted. Retrieved on December 3, 2013 from http://www.besthealthmag.ca/eat-well/healthy-eating/4-myths-about-food-poisoning-busted

Princess Padilla. (2013). Food Recall Report Says Food Recalls Were Up in Q3. Retrieved on December 5, 2013 from http://www.learn2serve.com/blog/food-recalls-increase-q3/

Tina Haynes and Kathy Bernard. (2013). Tackling Food Safety: Keeping Your Food Safe on Game Day. Retrieved on December 5, 2013 from http://www.foodsafety.gov/blog/blog_9.html