By following some basic food safety rules you can be food- illness free all summer!
Six Tips For Staying Food Illness Free For The Summer!
Diet is an important part of the process for anyone serious about losing weight and getting in shape, however in all the details about what to eat, when to eat and what not to eat, there is often little time given to the element of food safety. As the temperatures go up this summer more and more people will get sick from food poisoning and the bad part is that if you are eating several meals throughout the day, with most of those meals consisting of high protein foods, then you do indeed run a very high risk of getting sick if you are not careful with your food preparation and storage. According to the Center for Disease Control an estimated 76 million cases of food borne disease occur each year in the U.S. with most of them being rather mild cases and cause symptoms that last for a day or two. However many are indeed life threatening and the CDC estimates that there are 325,000 hospitalizations and 5,000 deaths related to foodborne diseases each year.
Food safety is a big issue for me, mainly because had a serious run in with food poisoning about 15 years ago and it changed my life forever. It was my first summer here in the U.S. and I left the house earlier than usual for work and thus was unable to cook and take my lunch with me, as I usually do. That day for lunch I had Chinese food for lunch at a nearby take out restaurant - nothing fancy or unhealthy, mind you just some steamed vegetables. Later that afternoon however I got so sick that I woke up the next day in a hospital bed a full 17 lbs lighter than I was the day before! After that ordeal I promised myself that I would learn everything there was about food safety to ensure that this would never happen again- and so far so good- which is quite an accomplishment for someone that eats 6 plus times a day!
I also worked for 14 years as the director of the recreation and food programs for both HIV/AIDS and the formerly homeless populations, and since I was responsible for sometimes preparing and handling food, I had to get food handling certification. When working with individuals with compromised immune systems, what might give someone else a bad day can end up costing them their lives! That being said, I would like to pass on some very important tips for you this summer to make sure that you stay bacteria free this summer and all year round!
Rule 1: KEEP HOT FOODS HOT AND COLD FOODS COLD!
If I was asked what is the best overall rule of thumb for food safety, I would have to go with this one. It is so important if you are carrying food with you during the day that you keep it at the appropriate temperature. If you cook something fresh and need to eat it several hours later I would suggest that you invest in a thermos that is big enough for you to fit your food into. You can also use your thermos to keep foods cold that may have been refrigerated- just be sure to wash your thermos by hand after each use and check to see that there are no cracks before you put your food inside. That way you have a safe way of carrying your food around with you during the day!
Rule 2: Wash your hands before you eat!
I know I sound like a mother on this one, but I can hardly tell you how much of a difference it makes if you routinely clean your hands before eating or handling your food. A quick trip to any bathroom will show you that most people don’t know how to wash their hands. You have to wash with hot water and soap (any kind will do- it doesn’t have to be antibacterial) for at least 30 seconds to really get the germs off. Most wash for less than 10, which really doesn’t do much. A good guide is to sing the Happy Birthday song twice while washing, that will make sure you spend just enough time to wash your hands properly. If not around a water source, you can use a hand sanitizer or alcohol swabs, just don’t assume that your hands are clean and just eat.
Rule 3: Get a thermometer for your refrigerator!
Bacteria exist everywhere and you cannot get away from them. Under certain conditions like when they have moisture, and favorable temperatures, they grow very quickly, increasing in numbers to the point where some types of bacteria can make you sick. Bacteria grow most rapidly in the range of temperatures between 40 and 140 °F, the so called “Danger Zone,” with some forms being able to double in number in as little as 20 minutes.
To minimize the growth of bacteria in a any unit the temperature must be kept at 40 degrees Fahrenheit or less. Unfortunately, while we humans can do a pretty good job of saying whether something is hot or cold, we cannot tell the difference between 39 degrees or 40 degrees, and that difference could make you very sick or worse. Don’t leave your temperature regulation to simple guesswork, invest in a thermometer for your fridge and you might be surprised that it isn’t always at the best temperature to keep your cold foods cold! By the way any perishable foods kept at temperatures above 40 °F for more than 2 hours should not be consumed.
Rule 4: If you eat out check the restaurant’s health inspection record!
It might sound a bit involved but the beauty of the Internet is that you can access the food saftey inspection records for just about any restaurant from your local department of health. Do a search for ‘restaurant food saftey inspections’ and you can look up where you are about to eat online. Interestingly enough, the Chinese take out restaurant that put me in the hospital had 48 violation points on their last inspection with everything from inadequate personal hygeine and unsantizited food contact surfaces to the presence of vermin in food areas. Do a quick check of the restaurants in your neighbourhood (if you live in New York you can do a check here) I’m sure that you will be surprised at how many places have sub standard food inspection reports.
Here in New York starting in July 2010, the health department will require certain types of food service establishments to prominently post letter grades that correspond to their sanitary inspection scores- which I am certain will go a long way in forcing a lot of food establishments to clean up their act!
Rule 5: Use Bleach and water to clean up!
Whenever you handle meats, you should have a bottle with a bleach solution to disinfect surfaces that come into contact with meats in addition to washing with hot soapy water. You only need 1 tablespoon of bleach per quart of water to make an effective germ killer and it is a cheap and effective means of killing bacteria. More expensive cleaners only make the germs smell nice for a while, but do nothing to kill them, so bleach is the way to go.
Rule 6: Use Your Sense Of Smell!
Sounds a bit primitive, but it works! I cannot tell you how often I hear people say that the fish they ate didn’t smell too wholesome, but they ate it anyway- that might be a recipe for getting sick as fresh fish does not have any smell whatsoever! For over one hundred thousand years our sense of smell has kept us healthy by telling us when foods were not good to eat but today it is a sense that we almost ignore when it comes to food. That and the fact that most of our meats are wrapped in plastic- which does a first rate job of hiding the fact that the meat may be past its prime. When buying meat, chicken or fish, there should be no smell- none at all. Any odor is a sign of bacteria proliferation and you need to not buy it, not cook it and not eat it! For prepared foods (especially at restaurants) if your protein foods have a strange odor, don’t be afraid to send it back. It is your right as a consumer and don’t take the risk of eating it because the potential downsides really aren’t worth it.
If the food is supposed to be served hot and is only lukewarm when you get it, or hot on the outside, but only warm on the inside, then send it back as well. It might sound like you are being a pain, but the reality is that you need to look out for your health, and if you are paying for food, it should be food that is safe to eat. Unfortunately foods don’t have to smell badly to make you sick, so it isn’t a be all and end all proposition that because there is no smell that all is well. There are two different types of bacteria: pathogenic bacteria, the kind that cause foodborne illness, and spoilage bacteria, the kind of bacteria that cause foods to deteriorate and develop unpleasant odors, tastes, and textures.
Pathogenic bacteria can grow rapidly in the “Danger Zone,” the temperature range between 40 and 140 °F, but they do not generally affect the taste, smell, or appearance of a food. In other words, one cannot tell that a pathogen is present.
On the other hand, spoilage bacteria can grow at low temperatures, such as in the refrigerator. Eventually they cause food to develop off or bad tastes and smells. Most people would not choose to eat spoiled food, but if they did, they probably would not get sick. It comes down to an issue of quality versus safety. I hope these tips help you stay safe and I wish everyone a happy summer!
Kevin Richardson is the creator of Naturally Intense High Intensity Training 10 Minute Workouts and one of the most sought after personal trainers in New York City. Get a copy of his free weight loss ebook here.
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