Limit the risk for food-related illnesses
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A salmonella outbreak attributed to raw tomatoes underscores the importance of protecting yourself and your family from food born illnesses.
Precautions should start where you buy your food and continue when handling food at home.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, foodborne ailments cause about 325,000 hospitalizations and 5,200 deaths nationwide each year. Tomatoes are just the most recent example.
Christin Homiski, MD, a member of the Backus Medical Staff, said it is especially important to wash produce thoroughly.
Also, in the summer months, make sure things don’t sit out in warm weather at a cookout for too long. Leftovers should be refrigerated promptly and food should be cooked thoroughly.
The most common symptoms of foodborne illness are diarrhea, nausea, vomiting and abdominal pain, but you don’t necessarily get all the symptoms.
Dr. Homiski said the elderly and anyone who is immuno-compromised, such as someone on chemotherapy or who has recently had a transplant, should watch out for a high fever or blood in the stool.
If they run the risk of becoming dehydrated because they can’t keep liquids down, or have severe abdominal pain they should call their doctor or go to the emergency department.
The Food and Drug Administration offers these tips for preventing illness when shopping:
- Check for cleanliness at the store.
- Keep raw meat, poultry and seafood separated from other foods in your grocery cart and in shopping bags.
- Inspect cans and jars to make sure they are not bulging or dented. Don't buy a food product in which the seal seems tampered with or damaged.
- Inspect frozen food packaging to make sure it is not damaged in any way.
- Select frozen foods and perishables last.
- Choose fresh eggs carefully, make sure none are cracked.
- Be mindful or time and temperature. Refrigerate perishable products as soon as possible after grocery shopping. If it will take more than an hour to get your groceries home, use a cooler to keep frozen and perishable foods cold. Also, when it is warm and you are using your car’s air conditions, keep groceries in the passenger compartment, rather than the trunk.
For more information, go to www.fda.gov/consumer/updates/foodillness051308.html