Careful steps in the kitchen can cut risk of illness from food-borne diseases

Food-borne diseases strike one in six people in the United States each year, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. That’s about 48 million illnesses, 128,000 hospitalizations, and 3,000 deaths annually. You can’t see, smell or taste pathogens in food. So if you’re not careful, they can spread throughout your kitchen, and if ingested they can make you sick. Here’s what you can do to reduce your risk:

Wash your reusable
grocery bags

(bigstock)

You’re doing your part for the planet by toting your groceries home in a reusable bag. But research has found that if reusable bags aren’t washed regularly, they can harbor potentially harmful bacteria. Gerba says that increases the risk of contaminating the food they carry. It also makes it more likely that bacteria will be transferred to your hands and your kitchen countertops. Gerba suggests washing reusable bags in hot water, either by hand or machine.

Refrigerate food right away

Always refrigerate or freeze meat, poultry, eggs and other perishables as soon as you bring them home. That helps slow the growth of harmful bugs in raw food, as long as your fridge runs between 32 and 40 degrees and your freezer stays at zero or lower. Toss any suspect items, and wash your hands after handling them and the trash. Use an appliance thermometer to check temperatures, and arrange food so that cold air can circulate throughout the fridge. Thaw, marinate and store raw food in leak-proof containers below produce and other ready-to-eat food.

Disinfect your countertops

Avoid placing anything on them that might transfer germs, including your purse or backpack. When handling food, take care not to splash liquids from raw meat and poultry onto countertops. After preparing raw food, mop up spills with paper towels, clean kitchen surfaces with hot soapy water, and wash your hands and anything else you might have touched.

Clean your sink

Drains, faucet handles and sponges are among the more heavily contaminated areas of the kitchen, according to Gerba and others who test for potentially harmful bacteria. To avoid spreading germs to food you’re preparing, clean the sink with products that are meant for kitchen surfaces and that are fortified with bleach, a powerful bacteria killer, especially after preparing raw meat, poultry or fish. Put sponges in the dishwasher or washing machine at least every few days. Wash dishcloths in hot water, or use paper towels.

Use separate cutting boards

Designate certain ones for raw meat, poultry or seafood, and others for vegetables, fruit and salad greens. Don’t switch, or you might turn your greens into a “salmonella salad,” says Charles Gerba, a professor of microbiology at the University of Arizona. Cutting boards should be washed thoroughly after each use with hot soapy water, according to food-safety experts. Sanitize them with a mixture of a tablespoon of unscented liquid bleach in a gallon of water, then rinse with clean water and let them air-dry or pat them dry with fresh paper towels. Replace cutting boards that have hard-to-clean scratches.

Copyright 2012. Consumers Union of United States Inc.