Eating For Health

Picnics.   Who doesn’t enjoy a summer picnic?   Good eating and fun times with friends.   Send your friends and family home with good treats but not with food poisoning.   I tell my students the story of my daughter going to a friend’s house for a cookout.   Everyone had a great time with their friends.   But the next day my daughter felt sick.   She talked to some friends who had gone to the cook out and they were sick too.   The cook out resulted in food poisoning for all those who attended.   What went wrong?   Why did people who went to the cook out get sick?   Surely the hostesses didn’t’ intend to make everyone sick.   So what food safety precautions can you take to make sure your friends and family enjoy the cookout without getting sick once they get home?   Eat Right, the website of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, has a great article, Keep Your Picnic Safe .   USDA also has clear guidance and fou...

Chipotle has certainly been in the news about E. Coli outbreaks at its restaurants.   What is E. Coli and what can you do to avoid getting an infection?   WebMD, CNN, CDC and others have focused on E. Coli and provide some excellent tips for consumers. What is E. Coli? It is a bacteria and the official name is Escherichia coli.   Food infections can come from animals or humans.   It is found in both animal and human intestines.    A simple way to describe it is “Poop Germs”.   Many of us can have E. Coli in our intestines and it is harmless.   However, some strains can make you sick with diarrhea, urinary tract infections, respiratory illnesses and if severe enough even kidney failure. What foods can be contaminated with E. Coli? Most commonly, E. Coli outbreaks are linked to undercooked hamburgers.   Produce can be contaminated and is the leading reason for outbreaks.   Raw milk as it hasn’t been pasteurized, and unpasteuri...