You probably have lots of concerns about the foods you give to
your child. Is it a nutritious meal? Will your child eat it? Is
there too much fat? But one thing that may not cross your mind as
you're slicing and dicing in the kitchen is food safety.
Why is food safety so important? Proper food preparations are
necessary to prevent your family from becoming sick from food-borne
illnesses caused by bacteria such as
E. coli
,
Salmonella
,
Campylobacter
and
Listeria
(which can cause symptoms such as diarrhea, fever,
abdominal cramps, nausea, vomiting, and dehydration). Food safety
precautions include knowing how to select foods in the grocery
store, how to store them, how to cook them, and how to clean up
afterward.
So what can you do to make sure your kitchen and the foods you
prepare are safe? Keep reading to find out.
Buying Food
The grocery store is your first stop on the way to food safety.
To ensure freshness, refrigerated items (such as meat, dairy, eggs,
and fish) should be put in your cart last. Keep meats separate from
other items, especially produce. If your drive home is longer than
1 hour, you might consider putting these items in a cooler to keep
them fresh.
When purchasing packaged meat, poultry, or fish, be sure to
check the expiration date on the
label
. Even if the expiration date is still acceptable, don't buy
fish or meats that have any unusual odors or look strange.
It's also important to check inside egg cartons - make sure
the eggs, which should be grade A or AA, are clean and free from
cracks.
Don't buy
:
- fruit with broken skin (bacteria can enter through the
opening in the skin and contaminate the fruit)
- unpasteurized ciders or juices (they can contain harmful
bacteria)
- prestuffed fresh turkeys or chickens
Refrigerating and Freezing
Before you put the groceries away, check the temperature of your
refrigerator and freezer. Your refrigerator should be set for 40º
Fahrenheit (5º Celsius), and your freezer should be set to 0º F
(-18º C) or lower. These chilly temperatures will help keep any
bacteria in your foods from multiplying. If your refrigerator
doesn't have a thermostat, it's a good idea to invest in a
thermometer for the fridge and freezer.
Of course, refrigerated and frozen items should be put away
first. Here are some quick tips to remember for foods that need to
be kept cool:
- Keep eggs in the original carton on a shelf in your
refrigerator (most refrigerator doors don't keep eggs cold
enough).
- Put meat, poultry, and fish in separate plastic bags so that
their juices don't get on your other foods.
- Freeze - or cook - raw meat, poultry, or fish within 2
days.
- Store raw ground meats in the freezer for a maximum of 4
months.
- Freeze cooked meats for a maximum 2 to 3 months.
- Remove stuffing from poultry after cooking and store it
separately in the refrigerator.
Preparing and Cooking
Follow these handling and cooking guidelines to help prevent
food-borne illnesses in your family.
Raw Meat, Poultry, Fish, and Egg Products
-
Wash your hands
with hot water and soap before preparing foods and after handling
raw meat, poultry, fish, or egg products.
- Keep raw meats and their juices away from other foods in the
refrigerator and on countertops.
- Use separate utensils for cooking and serving raw meat,
poultry, fish, or eggs (or wash the utensils in hot, soapy water
before using them to serve).
- Never put cooked food on a dish that was holding raw meat,
poultry, or fish.
- Thaw meat, poultry, and fish in the refrigerator or
microwave, never at room temperature.
- Cook thawed meat, poultry, and fish immediately.
- Throw away any leftover uncooked meat, poultry, or fish
marinades.
- Do not allow raw eggs to sit at room temperature for more
than 2 hours to reduce the risk of
Salmonella
infection.
- Thoroughly cook eggs.
- Never
serve foods that contain raw eggs, such as uncooked cookie dough,
homemade eggnog, mousse, and homemade ice cream. If you want to
use these recipes, substitute pasteurized eggs (found in the
grocery store's dairy case) for raw eggs.
- Cook meat until the juices run clear.
- Cook ground beef or poultry until it's no longer
pink.
Use a meat thermometer to tell whether meats are cooked
thoroughly. (Place the thermometer in the thickest portion of the
meat and away from bones or fat.) Most thermometers indicate at
which temperature the type of meat is safely cooked, or you can
refer to these recommendations:
- poultry (whole, pieces, and ground): 165º F (73.8º C)
- pork: 160º F (71º C)
- beef, veal, lamb, and roasts: 145º F (62.7º C)
- ground beef, veal, and lamb: 160º F (71º C)
- fish: 145º F (62.7º C)
- egg dishes: 160º F (71º C)
- leftovers: at least 165º F (74º C)
When cooking, broiling, or grilling meats on the stove, turn
them over at least once. In the microwave, cover all meats and:
- Turn patties over and rotate the dish halfway through
cooking.
- Rotate meatloaf dishes halfway through cooking (and let sit
for up to 7 minutes after cooking before eating - consult your
owner's manual).
- Stir ground meats once or twice.
Fruits and Vegetables
- Scrub all
fruits and vegetables
with plain water (even if you plan on peeling them) to remove any
pesticide residue, dirt, or bacteria.
- Wash melons, such as cantaloupes and watermelons, before
eating to avoid carrying bacteria from the rind to the knife to
the inside of the fruit.
- Remove the outer leaves of leafy greens, such as spinach or
lettuce.
Cleaning Up
Clean food is just one part of the food safety equation. You
also need to be sure that your kitchen surfaces and your hands are
clean to prevent the spread of bacteria.
- Refrigerate any leftovers as soon as possible after cooking.
If left to sit at room temperature, bacteria in the food will
multiply quickly.
- Consume leftovers within 3 to 5 days or throw them out.
- Wash cutting boards - which can become a breeding ground for
bacteria if they aren't cleaned carefully - separately from
other dishes and utensils in hot, soapy water; then disinfect
them with a homemade cleaning solution (1 teaspoon of chlorine
bleach in 1 quart of water). (Designate one cutting board for raw
meat, poultry, and fish.) After washing and disinfecting the
cutting board, rinse it thoroughly with plain water to remove any
bleach residue and leave it to air dry.
- Don't use old cutting boards with cracks or deep gouges
because bacteria may hide in the crevices of the board.
- Wash your hands if they come in contact with raw meat,
poultry, or fish.
- Don't use a dish towel to wipe meat juices from your
hands - use paper towels instead. Bacteria can contaminate the
cloth towels and can then spread to another person's hands.
If a dish towel does come in contact with the juices of raw meat,
poultry, or fish, launder the towel in hot water as soon as
possible.
- After preparing food, wipe your kitchen counters and other
exposed surfaces with a commercial kitchen cleaning product or a
homemade cleaning solution.
- Because sponges stay wet longer and their porous quality
attracts bacteria, experts recommend using a thinner dishrag that
can dry between uses instead of a sponge.
- Wash dirty dishrags in hot soapy water.
- Periodically sanitize your kitchen sink, drain, and garbage
disposal by pouring in a commercial kitchen cleaning agent or a
homemade cleaning solution.
By taking some simple precautions, you can reduce the chance of
food-borne illnesses in your family.
Reviewed by:
Mary L. Gavin, MD
Date reviewed: November 2007
Note: All information is for educational purposes only. For specific medical advice,
diagnoses, and treatment, consult your doctor.
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