Food-borne illnesses

Lately, there has been a lot of talk about food-borne illnesses in the news. How can I make sure I am keeping my family safe from the food we eat?

Food-borne illness can occur in any home. Symptoms of food-borne illness resemble the flu and include nausea, vomiting and diarrhea. Because of their small body sizes, young children are especially at risk.

These tips about safe storage, handling and preparation of food will help you prevent the spread of bacteria in your kitchen:

• Always wash your hands and cutting boards or other food preparation surfaces with hot, soapy water before preparing any food and after handling raw meat, poultry, seafood or eggs.
• Always use a food thermometer when you cook. A food thermometer will help you make sure your food has reached a high enough temperature to kill harmful bacteria.
• Cook all meat and poultry at an oven temperature of at least 325 degrees.
• Keep your refrigerator below 40 degrees and freezer at 0 degrees.
• Do not thaw raw fish in the refrigerator for more than 24 hours. Raw poultry or ground beef will keep one to two days and raw red meat three to five days.
• Thaw frozen foods under lukewarm running water, in the refrigerator or in the microwave. Meats thawed in the microwave must be cooked immediately. Do not thaw foods on the countertop.
• Never put cooked food on a plate that was used for raw meat.
• Always refrigerate leftovers within two hours of eating.
• You can put the kitchen sponge, washcloth or scouring pad in the microwave for one minute or run it through the dishwasher to help prevent bacteria growth.