Safety Measures Protecting Your Self From Food Sickness

With the recent food contamination scares food safety is definitely in the spotlight. Some simple safety measures can help reduce your risk of food sickness:

Keep It Clean
Wash your hands often. Wash your hands thoroughly before, during, and after handling food. Nearly half of all cases of food sickness could be prevented if people washed their hands more often when preparing and handling food, according to the American Dietetic Association (ADA) in Chicago. Therefore don’t forget to wash your hands before start cooking and after handling raw materials.

Use liquid or clean bar soap. Rub you hands vigorously together for 10 to 15 seconds.

Wash cutting boards, utensils, dishes, and kitchen surfaces you use to prepare food with hot, soapy water. Wash all the counties with anti-bacteria cleaners before you use them to prepare foods and after you are done.

Rinse well
Always wash fruits and vegetables thoroughly under running water and when possible scrub with a clean bush or hands. Use a vegetable brush. Throw away the outer leaves of lettuce or cabbage. Do not wash meat or poultry.

Use a clean plate for cooked meats, chicken, and fish. Wash plates that held uncooked food before using them again.

Keep sponges, dishcloths, and towels clean. If you're wiping up juices from uncooked meats, it's better to use paper towels. Throw them away when you're done.

Heating
Cook food to a proper temperature. Use enough heat to kill bacteria that might be lurking in food. Cook eggs until yolks are firm. Use a food thermometer for meats. Judging doneness by the color of the meat could be misleading. Cook beef to at least 145 F. Chicken should be thoroughly cooked.

Use a fresh dish towels every time cook.

Keep pets away from food preparation area.

Chill Out
Set the temperature in your refrigerator below 40 degrees Fahrenheit and use a refrigerator thermometer to check it.

Always refrigerate raw meat and poultry immediately.

Don't over pack your refrigerator. Cold air needs to circulate around food to keep it properly cooled.

If you're transporting food that spoils easily or eating it outside, pack it in ice.

Clean your refrigerator regularly. Throw out any leftovers stored for thee or four days.

Store leftovers in shallow, covered containers and use within 3-4 days.

In addition to the above safety measures, remember to:
* Defrost food properly. Defrost only in microwave or in cold water and don’t leave the food out on the counter to defrost.

* Avoid cross contamination by keeping raw meats separate from fruits, vegetables and ready to eat food. Use separate cutting boards.

*Replace cutting boards with cracks and cuts, where bacteria can hide.

*Store all starchy stuffing (rice, bead) separately from the poultry in which it was cooked.

*When eating from buffets, ensure chilled food is refrigerated or stored on ice and hot food is kept steaming hot.

*Don't order rare meat in a restaurant, and send it back to the kitchen if it's pink in the middle. Avoid eateries that don't look clean. Check to see if a safety inspection certificate is posted inside the restaurant.

*Avoid buying food from street vendors. Choose food premises that look clean and busy.

*Avoid any fruit with damaged skin. Avoid citrus fruit and melons from street vendors as they may have injected with water to make them heavier.
Safety Measures Protecting Your Self From Food Sickness