Food poisoning, a type of foodborne illness from something they ate or drank, usually occurs due to the germs and toxins in the food itself. Before dwelling into the ways to prevent food poisoning, here is how you can detect symptoms of food poisoning before treating it.
Usually the symptoms vary from mild to much more severe, mild symptoms include upset stomach, vomiting and diarrhea and escalates from there sometimes to bloody stools, fever, headaches and stomach pain.
The severe symptoms include blurred vision, headache, loss of movement in limbs, swallowing problems, weakness, and sometimes the numbness of the skin, these symptoms are usually not as often unless the illness is not resolved. The infection does not usually last very long and the periods vary, going from as little as 30 minutes to as long as 8 weeks.
The first and foremost method to prevent food poisoning is adopting or holding onto the habit of clean hands before handling food. Whether this is to clean meat, cook and eat food, hands should be washed with lukewarm water to destroy any pathogens present on your fingertips. Hands must also be washed after and before coming into contact with raw meat, to prevent the spread of germs from the meat and into your hands for the rest of the cooking process, cleaning meat is to remove the germs from them, hence it would make sense to clean your hands after. Before eating food, hands should be washed, with soap and water. In handy situations where one cannot wash their hands, hand sanitizers may come in handy, although this may not be as effective as washing your hands with soap and water, it still reduces the chances of you catching food poisoning or a disease. Therefore cleanliness is a must and one of the most crucial methods to prevent food poisoning or diseases, for example, ‘cholera’ is a disease that can produce severe acute watery diarrhea and is incredibly virulent, this is caused by the ingestion of contaminated water.
It is advisable to pay attention to expiration dates on perishable products like dairy, meat and poultry products even if the dates printed on food packages are a measure of quality rather than necessarily safety. Never purchase or consume food with a “sell-by” date that has passed or has an unpleasant odor. If there is a bad scent but you don’t detect it until you can open the package at home, call the store bought from and inquire about returning it. Sight and smell is best utilized to assess whether a food is edible or not, tasting is a major risk as a small amount of contaminated food can cause sickness. Avoiding any food with a broken wrap or seal is essential as well.
As you shop for food, juices and liquid from poultry or raw meat may drip onto produce, which could increase the risk of contracting food poisoning. Consider using separate bags for produce and protein. Even one is supposed to use a different cut board and knife for raw meat and fish.
It is not safe to defrost dinner by leaving a frozen package of meat or poultry out on the counter all day, neither is swiftly thawing frozen meat in hot water, as bacteria begins to grow when food becomes warmer than 40 degrees Fahrenheit. Hence, the most suitable methods would be to use the refrigerator, cold water, or a microwave to defrost food. Defrosting is a time consuming process, as it would usually take a day and a half to thaw out. When using a microwave to defrost, it’s important to know that the meat must be cooked immediately once thawed, partially warmed meat only stimulates further bacteria growth.
Food safety cannot be guaranteed without first verifying the temperature, despite the fact that color and texture can assist signals when food is properly cooked. You can search up on the internet to figure out the appropriate temperature for each meat to understand if its cooked or not, if one has trouble with this, a cooking thermometer can be utilized into the thickest part of the meat to know if it has reached the appropriate temperature.
Some temperatures are listed below:
While serving food, it is important to know that the food stays at its optimal temperature range, this is to prevent any threat of bacteria contamination. This can be done by storing the food in hot packs and boxes. After eating, if there are leftovers, it is to be stored appropriately in food grade containers and set at 40 degrees Fahrenheit or lower in the refrigerator and 0 degrees Fahrenheit or lower in the freezer. Leftovers are to be finished by usually 3-4 days and heated to 165 degrees Fahrenheit to eliminate any threat of contamination.
While dining out, you never know about the food, but it is important to check the ratings and especially the safety and hygiene rating before having your next meal there. Make sure your food is completely cooked and avoid partially cooked food (sushi and such), as it is not a very prominent dish in India, with the nature of the dish being raw fish, it is likely that one may get infected.
In the unfortunate case of you catching an infection, look out for these symptoms to know:
Diarrhea
Stomach pain and cramps
Nausea
Vomiting
Fever
If you have food poisoning, you should replenish electrolytes and lost fluids to avoid or cure dehydration. Make sure to hydrate yourself well. Try sipping modest amounts of clear beverages if vomiting is a concern. The most crucial treatment for food poisoning is replacing lost fluids and electrolytes
Adults should take oral rehydration fluids including Pedialyte, Naturalyte, Infalyte and Ceralyte if they have diarrhea or other signs of dehydration, are elderly, have weaker immune systems, or are experiencing other symptoms of dehydration. Liquids called oral rehydration solutions have glucose and electrolytes in them. The same applies for children.
In some cases, adults can take medicines such as ‘Pepto Bismol’ (bismuth subsalicylate) and ‘loperamide’ to treat diarrhea caused by food poisoning.
However, these medicines may be harmful for some age groups, hence it is important to consult a doctor or a medical professional before taking any medicine.
