Food poisoning

Food poisoning:

Food poisoning is a common distressing problem experienced by million to billions of people all across the world. The most common cause of food contamination resulting in food poisoning is the presence of organisms like bacteria, viruses or parasites in the food. Food poisoning is also called food borne illness. The type of illness caused by eating contaminated food. Bacteria, viruses, parasites and other toxins are the most common cause of food poisoning. It is so infectious that some one can even  die because of it. It causes extreme dehydration and discomfort in the intestine. There are more then 250 different diseases that cause food poisoning.

Cause:

Food poisoning occur when food that is contaminated  and infected with germs or harmful bacteria is consumed. It can take place while eating the food. Most common source of food poisoning is bacteria, viruses, toxins chemicals that transferred in the body by food. Other causes of food poisoning can be sell fish, insecticides or poisonous mushrooms and fish. This poisonous attacks and damage the nervous system and also leads to paralysis in some cases.Food poisoning can also caused by

• Contaminated  food not approved by food source.
• Chemical contamination.
• Physical contamination( glass, metal, false finger nail, plastics).
• Cross contamination.
• failure to properly cool food.
• Toxins
• Biological hazards  (Bacteria,viruses).
• Parasites.

Symptoms of food poisoning:

▪ headache 

▪ dehydration 

▪ vomiting 

▪ nausea 

▪ diarrhoea 

▪ fever 

▪ blood or plus in the stools 

▪ abdominal cramping 

▪ dizziness

Diet treatment:

To fight food poisoning one should concentrate on eating whole grains, fruits,juices , vegetables, soup are some examples of foods that doctors and experts  suggested to those who  are suffering from food poisoning. One of the famous diet for this condition is known as Brat  diet. This diet includes bananas,rices, toasts,  apples, crackers, carrots and other bland foods since they help the stomach to calm down and makes the patients feels more relaxed. For complete recovery one should rely on liquid and juices

Prevention:

The transference of food borne diseases  can be prevented through safe food handling practice . There are simple steps that can followed while purchasing,eating , storage, preparation and cooking phases of food handling that will minimise the risk of spreading food borne illness.

¤ Wash your hand

Wash your hands thoroughly with soap and water and dry them before handling food. After handling raw food includes meat, eggs, fishes , vegetables , after touching the bin, after toilet, blowing your nose, after touching your animals.

¤ Wash worktops 

Wash worktops before and after food preparing , particularly after they have been touched by raw meat, eggs , fish and vegetables. You don't need to use antibacterial spray hot soapy water water is fine.

¤ Wash dish clothes 

Wash dish clothes and tea towels regularly and let them dry before you use them again. Dirty clothes are prefect way to spread germs .

¤ Use separate chopping boards

Always use separate chopping boards to prepare raw foods such as fish and meat.

This is to avoid contaminating ready to eat foods with harmful bacteria that can be present in a raw food before it has been cooked.

¤ Cook food thoroughly

Make sure that poultry , pork , burgers, sausages and kebab's are cooked until streaming hot, with no pink meat inside. Don't wash raw meat before cooking as this can spread bacteria in your kitchen. Freeze raw chicken reduces the level of bacteria but doesn't eliminate them completely. The safe way to kill all bacteria from raw meat is to cook thoroughly.

¤ Keep refrigerators below 5°C

Keep your refrigerator below 5 °C and use a fridge thermometer to check it. This prevent harmful germs from growing and multiplying .

Avoid your fridge over filling if its too full air cannot circulate into it which can effects the overall temperature.

¤ Store raw meat eat on bottom shelf 

Always cover raw meat and store it on the bottom of the fridge where it can't touch and drip onto the other food.

¤ Keep raw meat separate 

Its especially important to keep raw meat separate from ready to eat foods such as salad, fruits and vegetables . This is because these foods wouldn't be cooked before you eat them, so any bacteria that get on to the foods from the raw meat would not be killed.