U. S. Food and Drug Administration
Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition
FDA/IFIC Booklet, 1993


FOOD RISKS: PERCEPTION VS. REALITY

Teacher's Guide, Lesson 5

Food Poisoning: What's My Best Defense?

BACKGROUND

Most foods will naturally contain organisms that might cause illness unless the organisms are washed off the food, hands, and utensils, are killed by thorough cooking, or are kept from growing by keeping the food cold.

STRATEGY

Allow students time to read the Mind Sweep and write out their conclusions. Discuss the implications in the statements. Students should readily spot the potential problems. But knowing the correct answer does not necessarily mean students would carry out safe food practices. This is a good springboard to discuss the "It won't happen to me" and "Just this one time" lines of reasoning and their possible consequences. After students have had a chance to read and mark column two, help them group the data on the chalkboard to find which preventative tips are already followed by most students and which are not. Discuss possible reasons for the results.

Answers: The party is set up for food poisoning. The mistakes made include buying dented and damaged cans, serving raw eggs, using cracked eggs, leaving food out for hours, and coughing and sneezing on food.

* U.S. Food and Drug Administration and the International Food Information Council Foundation, 1993

Student Exercise, Lesson 5


Name ______________________________________

FOOD RISKS: PERCEPTION VS. REALITY

Food Poisoning: What's My Best Defense?

MIND SWEEP

The student committee is putting on a dinner party. Suppose that it's your job to make sure the food served is safe to eat. "Listen" to the conversations of the party committee below and write down potential food safety problems.

Committee Member 1

"I'm a great shopper. I know our budget is tight, so I stretched our dollars by buying from the dented and slightly damaged canned food selection in the supermarket."

Committee Member 2

"You're not the only smart shopper. I got six cartons of eggs at half price just because several eggs in each carton were cracked. It doesn't matter to us because I'm going to use them right away to make eggnog."

Committee Member 3

"Space is a definite problem in this kitchen, but Donna and I have figured out a solution. After the dinner at six, we will just leave the leftovers on the table until the midnight supper. We bought four big paper tablecloths for covering the food to keep it clean."

Committee Member 4

"I know some of you are wondering, since I've been sneezing and coughing constantly for the past three days, if I'm going to be able to serve the food tonight. I want you all to know that I won't let you down; I'll be there no matter how sick I am."

GET ON THE OFFENSE

The best defense against food poisoning is to take the offensive--to work actively to prevent it. Health officials enforce safe practices in restaurants, but only you can enforce these practices at home. As you read the following list of preventative tips, check the ones that you do regularly. Study unchecked ones and put them into action when you buy, store, or prepare foods.

TIPS FOR PREVENTING FOOD POISONING

SENSE
Use good sense when you shop. __ Don't buy foods in dented, rusty, bulging, or leaky cans or in cracked jars or jars with loose or bulging lids. If you have such items at home, throw them out. __ Never buy cracked eggs. __ On your shopping trip, pick up frozen and perishable foods last and get them into your refrigerator and freezer at home as soon as possible.

SHIVER
Low temperatures may make you shiver, but they are ideal for foods. As the temperature of food goes down, so does the risk of organisms growing in it. __ Keep your refrigerator no higher than 40 degree F and your freezer 0 degree F or below. __ Don't let cooked or refrigerated foods, such as salads, sit at room temperature for more than two hours.

SANITIZE
Keep food free from organisms that cause food poisoning by keeping the food, the preparation equipment, and yourself clean. __ Wash your hands with soap and warm water before you start preparing food, before you handle a different food (for example, if you just handled raw chicken, wash your hands before preparing a salad), and after using the bathroom. __ Don't sneeze or cough on food. __ Thoroughly rinse fruits and vegetables with water before eating or preparing. __ Organisms can "travel" from raw to cooked food, so never let raw food touch cooked food. Wash utensils, including the cutting board, with soap and warm water between each preparation step.

SIZZLE
Get food hot enough to sizzle. High food temperatures (165 degree F to 212 degree F) reached by boiling, baking, frying, and roasting kill most food poisoning organisms. __ Cook foods thoroughly at a high enough heat to kill organisms. Never eat raw eggs; they might contain harmful organisms. __ When cooking in the microwave, stir or turn the food and turn the dish several times. __ Once cooked, keep hot foods hot until eaten.

SUSPICION
Be suspicious. __ If you notice mold, cut off a large section of the food around the mold and throw it out. __ If you're not absolutely certain about a food, throw it out!

* U.S. Food and Drug Administration and the International Food Information Council Foundation, 1993

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