Food Poisoning – introduction

People can become ill from eating contaminated food. You can’t see bacteria with the naked eye, so the best way to avoid getting ill is to follow certain procedures when handling, storing, preparing and serving food.

You can, of course, have your own rules in your own kitchen, but what about when you eat out? In the UK, and some other countries, there are stringent rules to follow in commercial kitchens, and all food handlers must have an up to date food hygiene certificate. Elsewhere, you can take your chances. It helps to be aware of the rules and therefore know what risks you will or won’t accept.

Food poisoning usually results in vomiting and diarrhoea. Urghh! Who wants to spend their time doing that? It’s much better to follow some simple safety standards and avoid the risks completely.

Most food poisoning incidents are extremely unpleasant but not life-threatening for healthy people. However, there are several groups at higher risk so it’s as well to be aware of this. The risk groups include:

• infants
• pregnant women
• elderly people
• people with weakened immunities, such as hospital patients

Food poisoning cases in the above groups can have very serious implications and in some cases may be fatal.

The symptoms of food poisoning can be sudden – sometimes occurring within a couple of hours of eating the contaminated food. There can also be an interval of several days.

As someone who has suffered from serious food poisoning (not from my own cooking!), and been laid low for several days by it, I can only say that food poisoning is something to avoid at all costs.

There’s probably no need to avoid eating out or to be too worried about eating in less developed countries. I’ve lived, worked, and travelled in Asia for a couple of decades and only had food poisoning a couple of times. I don’t worry about it. But I am aware of it and prefer to minimise my risks.

This series of articles, I hope, will help you to avoid poisoning people with the food you make.

This is Chapter One, Part One in a series of articles broadly similar to the course offered by the Royal Society for the Promotion of Health for its Food Hygiene Certificate.
Part Two: Food Poisoning – an illness on the rise

Chapter Two: Bacteria
Chapter Three: Hygiene control and personal hygiene
Chapter Four: Pest Control
Chapter Five: Kitchen Layout and Design
Chapter Six: Temperature Control
Chapter Seven: Cleaning the Work Area