How to prevent high risk groups of food-borne diseases

What is a food-borne disease?

Classification of foodborne diseases

Refers to food-borne illness associated with the consumption of all food-related diseases, these diseases are usually caused by primary pathogenic bacteria such as Salmonella, but there are some food-borne pathogens, is wound through the skin when handling or cooking food invasion of the body, Vibrio vulnificus is one example. Persons who suffer from food-borne diseases, often suffer from abdominal pain, vomiting and diarrhea and other gastrointestinal symptoms sex, sometimes fever and other systemic symptoms. When the risk of food-borne diseases, healthy people usually mild symptoms, but some people easily infected, the disease will be more serious.

High risk groups

The elderly, infants, pregnant women and those who belong to poor immunity "high risk groups." They may more vulnerable to a certain kind of pathogen infection or after infection prone to severe illness or complications.

• Senior citizens

Elderly people more prone to develop food-borne diseases and complications because their immune system decline, gastric acid secretion is also reduced, for example, when the elderly Salmonella infection, higher risk of complications and death.

• Infants

Infant's immune system is not yet mature, less gastric acid secretion, so are more likely to suffer from food-borne diseases, such as when they are subject O157: H7 E. coli infection, a higher chance of complications.

• Pregnant woman

Hormonal change that occurs during pregnancy, can affect the mother's immune system, it is possible to make the body more prone to certain infections, especially Listeria monocytogenes infection even. Listeria infection can cause premature delivery, miscarriage, stillbirth or newborn infant mortality and so on.

• People with poor immunity

Such persons by their inherent medical illness or drug treatment effect, weakened immunity, such as diabetes patients and patients with chronic liver infection Vibrio vulnificus, there will be a higher risk of death.

Methods to prevent infection

General Precautions

1. Hands, cutting boards, containers and cooking utensils before and after contact with raw food, to wash with warm water and soap.
2. Raw and cooked food separately handling and storage, in order to avoid cross-infection.
3. Perishable foods should not be placed outside the refrigerator more than two hours, leftovers should be stored at four degrees Celsius or less as soon as possible, and again before eating it reheat to boiling point.