Tips to prevent Salmonella food poisoning! Salmonella Food poisoning due to tomatoes!

I stumbled upon a news article that people in U.S are falling ill after consuming raw tomatoes, food poisoning. The states are affected stretching from California to Virginia. The news also reports that the restaurants have stopped serving food decorated with tomatoes for some time until the issue is set right. The government is recalling the tomatoes from the market.

There are certainly ways to protect your self from food poisoning. Food poisoning occurs due to eating food infected with salmonella, a bacterium. The bacteria grows on the food left in open for a long time under a temperature ideal for its growth and multiplication.

Health symptoms of food poisoning, after the contaminated food has been consumed, is severe diarrhea accompanied by stomach pain, vomiting. It may even include fever. It leads to intense dehydration and is lethal if not treated at the earliest. People have died from it.

I thought, providing few tips on preventing food poisoning would do good.

It's elementary! To prevent food poisoning is not to consume raw food items. Keeping this in mind, here are few tips to prevent food poisoning. These tips are global, it applies to areas where the food is prepared or consumed.

Clean food preparation facilities. Maintain a clean kitchen. Do not allow litter around and keep a clean closed garbage bin.

Maintain clean and proper ventilation in the kitchen.

Discard Utensils. The eating utensil that are broken or chipped should not be used in the kitchen. Deep cracks in utensils are the bacteria’s breeding ground.

Chopping boards. Keep the chopping boards neat and clean. Use soap to wash them frequently. Replace with a new one at regular intervals.

Dogs / Pets. Whatever the reason never let your pets into the kitchen, they bring bacteria into the food area.

Pests. Keep the kitchen and serving area pest free. Use the pest control sprays that are easily available at the stores for this purpose.

Separate cooked food from raw food. Keep the cooked food away from the raw food. Else, the bacteria can be transferred to the ready to eat food.

Do not forget to wash your hands while preparing food. Use soap to clean frequently.

Do not use the same utensil that you used to store the raw foods, like meat, chicken for serving food.

Wash fruits and vegetables before eating. Clean them under running water.

Store the food in the refrigerator. Do not allow food to stay at room temperature, as this is the ideal condition for the bacteria to develop.

Check the food packets and containers before purchasing for any tear or rust.

Avoid eating raw foods when outside.

Keep your refrigerator clean and neat. This is where your food stays in longer.

Change the kitchen cloths regularly.

If you want to do some dressing, warm the raw vegetables in a microwave for few seconds. This kills the bacteria to certain extent.

Keep soap at a handy place in the kitchen for frequent use.

Always sanitize the kitchen utensils in hot water atleast once a week.


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