What Is Food Poisoning?
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Food poisoning occurs when you swallow food or drink that has been contaminated with certain types of bacteria, parasites, viruses, or toxins.
Most food poisoning cases are due to bacteria such as Staphylococcus or Escherichia coli. Some famous cases are the 2009 nestle cookie dough food poisoning incident which landed them in court after a woman suffered food poisoning from eating half a bag of nestle raw cookie dough, The 2009 peanut butter poisoning incident in the states in which 501 people fell sick with salmonella and the 2011 curry sauce incident which was linked to Egyptian seeds and has taken many lives. Symptoms are abdominal cramps, diarrhoea which may be bloody, fever, headache, nausea and vomiting and weakness.
Types of food poisoning
There are many forms of food poisoning each caused by different bacteria some of the big ones are: Botulism (Clostridium botulinum,), Campylobacter enteritis’, Cholera, E. Coli enteritis’’ Fish poisoning, Listeria, Staphylococcus aureus, Salmonella and Shigella. These all have different effects some can even kill you!
So how does it get in my food?
Intestinal bacteria comes into contact with a form of meat or poultry whilst being processed, the water used in the growing or shipping process contains animal or even human urine or faeces or it has been poorly prepared or handled.
How do I make sure my food will NOT give me food poisoning?
You cannot make the possibility of getting food poisoning impossible but you can make the chances very slim. Here are how you can do just that: Wash your hands whilst preparing and cooking the food, clean all the kitchen equipment before and after use, make sure dairy products and mayonnaise is kept in the fridge, keep things at the correct temperature, reheat things properly, cook fish or oysters, wash raw fruit and veg well, undercooked meat and eggs and make sure your water is all clean.
Am I more likely to get food poisoning than others?
You are more likely to catch food poisoning if : You have a serious medical condition, You have a weekend immune system and if you travel outside the country.
each caused by different bacteria some of the big ones are: Botulism (Clostridium botulinum,), Campylobacter enteritis’, Cholera, E. Coli enteritis’’ Fish poisoning, Listeria, Staphylococcus aureus, Salmonella and Shigella. These all have different effects some can even kill you!
So how does it get in my food?
Intestinal bacteria comes into contact with a form of meat or poultry whilst being processed, the water used in the growing or shipping process contains animal or even human urine or faeces or it has been poorly prepared or handled.
How do I make sure my food will NOT give me food poisoning?
You cannot make the possibility of getting food poisoning impossible but you can make the chances very slim. Here are how you can do just that: Wash your hands whilst preparing and cooking the food, clean all the kitchen equipment before and after use, make sure dairy products and mayonnaise is kept in the fridge, keep things at the correct temperature, reheat things properly, cook fish or oysters, wash raw fruit and veg well, Don't undercook meat and eggs and make sure your water is all clean.
Am I more likely to get food poisoning than others?
You are more likely to catch food poisoning if : You have a serious medical condition, You have a weakend immune system and if you travel outside the country.
Photo by Zephyrance Lou