Food Safety Tips for the Holidays
It’s the most wonderful time of the year: the holidays! It’s safe to say that no one wants to spend the holidays sick. While some illnesses are simply out of our control, there are many others that we can avoid, including food poisoning.
According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, C. perfringens is a strain of bacteria associated with cooked foods left out at room temperature and is to blame for nearly a million cases of foodborne illnesses in the United States each year. Outbreaks are commonly seen in November and December, right around the holidays.
As such, at Victoria ER, we’ve put together a list of safety tips for you to consider to help prevent food poisoning and illness this holiday season.
First and foremost, make sure to consistently wash your hands (whether you’re cooking or not). You’ve undoubtedly heard it many times over the past couple of years, but it’s true: Keeping your hands clean is a great way to stay safe and healthy. Additionally, you’ll need to keep all cooking surfaces clean to stop cross-contamination.
Further, you’ll want to:
- Thaw turkey/ham/all meats in the refrigerator, in a sink of cold water, or the microwave
- Keep all foods separated before and during cooking (juices can drip onto other foods)
- Do not consume raw dough or batter
- Cook food thoroughly and use a food thermometer
- Use pasteurized eggs instead of raw eggs
