With picnic season and beach barbecues just weeks away, it’s important to know how safe your food is. Fortunately, the Centers for Disease Control reports that cases of food poisoning from food contaminated with bacteria or viruses have declined by anywhere from 9% to 49% over the past decade. The study, which was published in the CDC's Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, is based on preliminary results that are drawn from a network of 44.5 million people in 10 states and that focus on Salmonella, Listeria, Shigella, Vibrio and E. coli 157. These microbes are commonly transmitted to people from undercooked shellfish, meat and poultry or unpasteurized milk and juices.

What it Means: Contaminated food can cause diarrhea, fever and abdominal pain and sometimes even death (particularly in children). While the decline in infections is good news, experts warn that with some pathogens, the number of infections still exceeds the national health objective. Safe food practices that could bring contamination cases down further include making sure that perishable items such as egg- and potato- salads are kept refrigerated and that raw hamburgers and chicken are kept separate from other foods.

From the Archive:
03/23/2003 Can Cold Cuts Kill?
09/30/2002 What to Do About Listeria