When Food Poisons
Germ Warfare
An often overlooked area of food health is avoiding food poisoning. Food can cause illness if it contains certain bacteria or viruses. These germs are so small that a million would fit on a postage stamp. It takes somewhere between 10 and 100,000 to make you sick, depending on the type and the person. Some of the more common food illnesses are E. coli, salmonella, Norwalk virus, and listeria.
Norwalk virus
The Norwalk virus causes about half of food illnesses. Throwing up, combined with the trots, keeps you near a bathroom. It usually hits 24 hours after eating bad food and can last 2-3 days. It is typically introduced to foods during prep. Good hygiene eliminates the risk.
Cosmetic Poison
Botulism is now a rare food illness. It’s much more common as a cosmetic procedure, botox. Botox (botulism toxin) is a toxin made by the botulism bacteria. It works by blocking nerve signals that contract muscles that causes wrinkles. The botulism bacteria is one of the most deadly: 1 gram could kill 1 million people.
Parasites
In addition to bacteria and viruses, food can also be contaminated with parasites. Parasites range in size from microscopic to visible with the naked eye. Most commonly, they are found in meat, seafood, water, and digested food waste. Parasites are common in some tropical countries. Up to 80% of people in some regions are infected. If you travel, take extra care with meat and water, as well as any unwashed foods. Food that is thoroughly cooked eliminates parasite risk, for the most part. Cold freezing for 7 days also kills most parasites. Oddly, some parasites can cause a personality change, so don’t eat risky foods. Most food transmitted parasites can be treated with medication or minor surgery.
Toxic Food
Some food contains natural toxins. Some plants are poisonous as a form of protection. Many fruits contain toxins in their seeds. Apple seeds, peach and cherry pits, and even some almonds contain a form of cyanide in tiny amounts. Of course, many mushrooms are poisonous. Some shellfish contain a type of toxin produced from eating algae. These types of toxins are not destroyed by freezing or cooking. As a rule, don’t eat food in the wild you are not familiar with and get your seafood from a reliable source.
Top Food Poisoning Suspects
Three food types cause most of the food poisoning:
Leafy Greens,
Meat and Poultry,
Dairy and Eggs
Leafy Greens
Lettuce outbreaks happen a lot. It is susceptible to bacteria because it grows so close to the soil. If contaminated organic fertilizer is used, lettuce can pick up the germ. Most lettuce is washed in water containing chlorine, but it is not 100% effective.
Don’t use old lettuce. The longer it sits, especially in warm, damp areas, the more the bacteria grow. Bagged lettuce is riskier, as the plastic traps moisture and bacteria --- buy the whole head, it’s safer. Sprouts are probably the riskiest plant food, as they are grown in warm, wet conditions. Organic vegetables don’t always have lower bacteria contamination, they may be worse.
Meat and Poultry
Meat is not sterile. No food is. All real food comes from living things, and all living things have germs. Ground meat is especially risky. The reason it is more susceptible to germs, compared to steak or roast, is that bacteria can get inside and grow. Germs generally develop on the surface, but with ground meat, that surface is vast, as almost the entire amount is exposed at some point during processing.
Clean Pork
When we grew up, we were told not to eat undercooked pork, because of the risk of it containing a parasite called trichinosis. Thanks to modern commercial pork farming methods, this parasite has been virtually eliminated from commercial pork. That means you no longer have to cook pork just short of hockey puck texture. A little pink in pork is OK, but hard to get used to. If the pork is raised outdoors, the risks are much higher. In those cases, cook pork thoroughly. So, save money by cooking pork loin instead of sirloin.
Louis Pasteur’s Secret for Dairy
Pasteurization, developed by Louis Pasteur in 1882, is an indispensable health breakthrough, especially for milk. Milk is an excellent place for bacteria to grow. Raw milk (unpasteurized milk) still causes more hospitalization than any other food. Never give raw milk to the young, the old, or the pregnant.
Pasteurization is not sterilization. It does kill some beneficial bacteria and some enzymes, and some vitamins are reduced, but the trade-off is safe milk. This is true for most dairy products, soft cheese, yogurt, and ice cream --- they should be pasteurized. Hard cheeses are aged long enough to kill the harmful bacteria that milk can carry. Fruit juice should also be pasteurized.
Preventing Food Poison
Some foods are hit with high-power radiation to kill bacteria and viruses. This process doesn’t make the food radioactive. In fact, it is very hard to tell if food has been irradiated. It is similar to getting an X-ray (a form of radiation). An X-ray doesn’t make a person radioactive. In Canada, only ground beef, potatoes, onions, wheat, and spices are allowed to be irradiated. In the US, radiation is more widely used, but irradiated foods must bear a mark showing it has been irradiated.
When Foods Become Poison
Food can be contaminated before harvest, during harvest, when processing, or while in storage or shipping. They can also become contaminated in your kitchen. A few bacteria won’t make you sick, but if you allow bacteria to multiply, safe food can become dangerous.
Be Food-safe in Your Kitchen:
Clean hands and counters often.
Separate raw meat all the time: shopping, storage, and prep.
Refrigerate. In less than 2 hours above fridge temperature, bacteria can increase 50-fold. If there were 100 bacteria, in 2 hours of warm storage, there could be 5,000. This is especially true for leftovers. At freezing temperatures, bacteria are dormant, but not dead.
Cook to the right temperature, especially ground meats, poultry, and leftovers.
Reusable Bacteria
Reusable shopping bags can harbour bacteria. If you use reusable shopping bags, use them only for groceries, not for anything else. And it might not be a bad idea to put meat into disposable bags. That prevents bacteria from raw meat contaminating your bags. It is a good idea to wash reusable shopping bags once a month.
When Food Makes You Sick
Foodborne illness can cause symptoms from 1 hour to 1 week after eating contaminated food, depending on the type of germ. Most often, it is not the last meal you ate that causes the illness. Symptoms include nausea, vomiting, stomach cramps, and diarrhea. However, symptoms may differ among the different types of foodborne diseases. Most last only a day or two.
When to See a Doctor
If you have food poisoning symptoms, drink plenty of water. If you have a fever over 102 or have blood in the stools, see a doctor. And, watch for dehydration. If you can’t keep liquids down, dehydration is sure to follow. See a doctor. Also, see a doctor if the symptoms last more than 3 days.
Don’t Despair, Food is Good
At this point, you might be saying to yourself, “I’m never eating food again.” There is no risk-free life, but you can make your risk tiny. Buy good quality food from reliable sources, make your kitchen food safe, throw out old food, wash hands and surfaces often, and cook your meat. If you do that, your food will be safe and tasty.
