Helpful Hints For A Safe Kitchen

Safety hints for use during preparation of food: There are probably millions of bacteria doing the backstroke in your intestines right now. Most are harmless. A few strains cause inconvenience like travelers diarrhea. Others, including E.coli 0157:H7, can be deadly. Its what killed Alex Donley and Joy Galler. And it's what sent more than 500 people to the hospital in California, Idaho, Nevada and Washington state in 1993, after they ate undercooked burgers in fast food restaurants.

The center for disease control (CDC) estimates that 20,000 Americans eat enough E. Coli 0157:H7 to make them ill each year. The bug could kill as many as 500. Under cooked beef, especially ground beef, is the food most likely to be contaminated. But don't think that your immune just because your not a burger fan. You can get a potentially lethal dose simply by coming into contact with a person who has been infected.

Listeria. If it travels from your gastrointestinal tract to your brain or other organs, odds are one in four that you will die. Pregnant women are particularly vulnerable. If it invades the uterus, it can cause a miscarriage. In 1985, contaminated un-aged white cheese (queso blanco) killed 46 southern Californians. Tainted processed meats, undercooked chicken and deli-type salads have also resulted in outbreaks. The CDC estimates that Listeria causes about 1,800 Americans to become ill-and 400 to die-every year. Unlike most other food poisoning bugs, Listeria thrives in cold temperatures.

Campylobacter. Every year more than 2,000,000 Americans suffer from diarrhea, vomiting and fever after eating food infected with campylobacter. While it can make you very sick, "it's far less lethal than some of the other bacteria", says the CDC's Paul S. Mead. More often than not, the culprit is undercooked chicken or other foods that have been contaminated with raw chicken.

Salmonella. Fortunately, only a handful of the 2,000 or so types of salmonella cause food poisoning. But when one does, it can be a real doozy. In 1985 more than 150,000 people in the Chicago area became ill-and at least two died-after drinking salmonella tainted milk. It was the largest food poisoning outbreak in US history. Chicken, beef and eggs are the food most likely to be contaminated, though. During the past decade, salmonella has infected the hen flocks through the northeast, so the bug could be transmitted from an infected hen directly to the inside of the egg. While most eggs aren't contaminated, you should treat them as if they were. Cook them thoroughly (and don't lick spoons used to stir raw or uncooked batter). From 1985 to 1992 at least 437 outbreaks and 53 deaths were traced to Salmonella from eggs.

Spreading bacteria: Food poisoning used to be local in nature. If you got sick after eating a hamburger at home, you complained to your butcher. Chances are he'd already heard about it from his other customers. Today, who's got a butcher? Who has any idea where their food comes from? Take E. Coli 0157:H7. "It's emergence is an unanticipated result of the fast food revolution", explains Mitchel L. Cohen, director of the bacterial and mycotic diseases division at the CDC, (Center for Disease Control). The meat in a typical fast food hamburger could contain bits of beef from a hundred different cows from a dozen states and several foreign countries. A single contaminated cow could infect thousands of burgers from Maine to Hawaii. Whats more, burgers are often frozen and stored for months before they are eaten. So while a few cases of bloody diarrhea in New Jersey in January and in San Diego in April may be due to the same bad meat, who's ever going to figure it out.

Whiff and a prayer: Eyes, fingers and noses. The ones on beef inspectors have all of ten seconds to examine each 1000 pound beef carcass as it comes whizzing by on the conveyer belt. Poultry inspectors check 90 birds a minute. All they can do is jab a suspicious looking piece of flesh or sniff around for spoilage. No microscopes. No laboratory analyses. Just a quick glance, whiff and pat and it's out the door. That's no different from how they did it 100 years ago, when our meat inspection system was designed.
It's like using "the aviation regulations from the age of the Wright brothers with todays jet travel", says Rainer Mueller of Oceanside, California And, like 100 years ago, inspectors don't have a chance of catching most contamination. Mueller knows that all to well. His 13 year old son Eric died in 1993 after eating one of his favorite foods,- a cheeseburger,- at a local fast food restaurant. If Poke and sniff doesn't cut it, how do we prevent potentially Harmful food from getting to our table. All of the food that you eat must be properly cooked to the proper temperature.

THE SAFE FOOD KITCHEN:

Handle raw meat, poultry, seafood and eggs as if they were contaminated. Even if they don't start out with enough bacteria to make you sick, mishandle them and they easily could. Don't let the juices touch other food, either raw or cooked. After you handle raw meat, etc., wash your hands, utensils, and all surfaces with hot soapy water.

Never eat shell fish like oysters, clams, or mussels unless they have been thoroughly cooked. They could contain bacteria and viruses that cause hepatitis or gastroenteritis.

Marinate raw meat and poultry in the refrigerator, not on the counter. Don't serve the marinade unless you've boiled it at least one minute. And don't baste your food with the uncooked marinade.

Stuff raw poultry just before cooking it. Better yet, cook poultry and stuffing separately.

Cook the meats thoroughly, but don't over cook them. Heat kills bacteria, but too much heat causes meat, poultry and fish to form possible carcinogenic aromatic amines (HHAs). Use a meat thermometer in the thickest part of the meat, but make sure that it doesn't touch the bone or you will get a false reading.. The USDA says to cook your meat at least to the following internal temperatures.

       Beef, Pork, Lamb and Veal		160
       Poultry					180
       Stuffing				        165
       Boneless turkey roast			170  to  175
       Fish and seafood			        145
	  

To reduce the formation of HHAs, microwave your meat, poultry or fish on high for 30 to 90 seconds or until the juices start to flow. Then pour them off before you start cooking.

Don't let your eggs run: They're safe when the whites are completely firm and the yolks are just beginning to thicken.

Cutting boards-wood or plastic: Wood or plastic? Two years ago, University of Wisconsin food scientists shocked every one when they announced that bacteria thrive on plastic but are mysteriously killed on wooden cutting boards.
No one has been able to duplicate their findings. In fact, new studies by the FDA show that bacteria become trapped in wooden cutting boards and are difficult to dislodge by rinsing. And USDA researchers have found that raw meat leaves fewer bacteria on plastic than on wood boards, and it's easier to wash them off of plastic boards. Here are the latest USDA recommendations:

Cutting raw meat, poultry or fish. Use a plastic or glass board. If you insist on wood, label it "for meat only" and don't use it for anything else.

Cleaning boards. Use hot soapy water, then rinse and air dry or pat dry with a fresh towel. Better yet, run the board through the dish washer (plastic only)

Replacing boards. Toss any cutting board that has developed hard to clean groves.

Food safety registry: During the last three years, have you suffered from food poisoning serious enough to see a doctor? How about a member of your family?
While you should report all food poisoning to the state or local department of health, you can do more. Victims who are willing to talk to the press can have a powerful impact on congress and the media.
If you would like to help, please write to the address listed just below. Tell them when the food poisoning occurred, what you think you got it from, the symptoms, how long they lasted, any medical treatment you received, what the diagnosis was, and any other details that you think are important.
Send your comments, (including your name, address and phone number where you can be reached), to:

        CSPI-FOOD SAFETY REGISTRY, SUITE 300,
	1875 CONNECTICUT AVE. N.W.,
	WASHINGTON, D.C. 20009