One of the most important aspects of Food hygiene revolves around keeping food fresh and free of any harmful agents that may cause health problems if ingested.
Food Storage
Raw food as well as food in most forms requires some kind of storage. The most common type of food storage is the refrigerator. Food in the refrigerator is not “frozen” and still spoils, though at a slower rate than if it was stored at room temperatures. Any food that can be stored at room temperature can typically be also stored in the refrigerator, which maintains a cool temperature above the freezing point of water.
Besides the refrigerator, many foods are suitable or designed to be stored in the freezer. The freezer maintains temperatures well below the freezing point of water which means that no bacterial or fungal growth is possible. However, the fatty oils of food stored in the freezer can still become spoiled if stored long enough; therefore even the freezer cannot keep food fresh forever.
It is very important to minimize the time food stays outside the refrigerator and especially the freezer as it runs great risks of spoiling or becoming contaminated if it comes in touch with unclean surfaces. Moreover, food stored in the freezer should not be refrozen if it ever becomes thawed and must be used promptly.
Handling Food and Food Preparation
The first and foremost principle of food hygiene is to wash your hands regularly and always wash your hands before coming to any contact with food. Any surfaces and utensils that will come in contact with the food must also be cleaned and kept clean even when no food is prepared on them to prevent bacterial and fungal growth.
After the food is consumed, any dishes, plates, utensils and storage trays that had been used must be promptly cleaner with strict hygiene to avoid any microbial growth on them. Remember that most kitchen soaps do not act as antibacterial agents and therefore are inadequate in cleaning areas and items where bacteria has been left to grow.
The human eye is a very delicate organ and its health can be affected by a host of factors such as injury, infection, aging and various other medical problems. The good news is that most of those problems can be lessened or even avoided altogether by applying proper eye hygiene.
Eye First Aid
If a foreign body, such as an eyelash or a wood splinter, enters the eye you have to avoid rubbing your eye, even if it itches a lot. It is best if you try to induce tear production by pulling your upper eyelid outwards and flush away the foreign body. If this does not work you can try to wash the eye with plenty of water while being careful not to rub it. If the problem persists it is best to cover your eye with some gauze and seek medical attention.
If a larger foreign body gets stuck in your eye you must not try to remove it yourself or you risk damaging your eye. Instead, cover your eye with some gauze and seek professional help. In some instances such foreign bodies can only be removed by an eye specialist.
Eye Infections and preventive measures
Without proper eye hygiene the eye can become susceptible to bacterial and even viral infections. The most common result of such infections is the inflammation of the outermost layer of the eye and the inner surface of the eyelids known as Conjunctivitis.
To avoid any eye infections hand contact with the eye itself should be avoided at all times and everything that comes in contact with the eye must be clean. Towels must be used carefully when drying around the eye area and they should never come in contact with the eye itself. Also, face towels should not be used when wet and be changed and cleaned regularly to avoid any bacterial or fungal growth on them that could cause eye infection when used.
Smoking may cause irritation to the eye and generally smoking is known to dehydrate and tire the eye so people with eye conditions should consider stopping or limiting their smoking (Or they should smoke with their eyes closed!)
Direct sun exposure can cause permanent damage to the eye, therefore eye protection such as sunglasses must be worn outside when sunny or when one stays for long periods of time in snowy places in daytime. Make sure your eyeglasses have the appropriate UV (ultra-violet) filter to protect your eyes.
People using contact lenses must wash their hands meticulously before handling and applying them to the eye. You should always use the appropriate contact lens solution to clean your contact lenses and make sure it has not expired. Finally, water should NEVER be used instead of contact lens solution to clean the contact lenses since this carries huge potential risks for the user ranging from a simple Conjunctivitis to the potentially devastating Acanthamoeba keratitis which may even lead to loss of sight.
Every nasty thing that can grow on food can be potentially dangerous and sometimes even deadly.
Be it cooked, raw or processed, food in any form can potentially harbor molds, fungi, various parasites as well as harmful bacteria and the toxins they might produce.
We need to have at least some basic knowledge about those dangerous food agents if we are to protect ourselves and maintain good food hygiene.
Below you can find some useful info about each possible food hygiene hazards:
Molds and Fungi
All molds are fungi while not all fungi are molds and while both are invaluable in the circle of life they can be really dangerous to our own lives.
Molds and fungi are arguably the least dangerous things you will find in your food, but they are responsible for most food spoilages and can potentially be very dangerous to your personal health and a real food hygiene hazard.
Many molds are harmless and will only make the food taste bad, while others are quite more dangerous. One good example of a “mostly harmless” mold is the bread mold.
However there are some fungi that create toxins known as mycotoxins. One such type of toxins is the Aflatoxins which can affect cereals as well as nuts and especially peanuts. Aflatoxins are highly toxic and among the most carcinogenic substances known to man, so don’t take molds and fungi lightly!
There are thousands of molds and fungi species and at least some of them can grow in harsh conditions such as low pH or the temperatures of a typical fridge.
The good news
Molds and fungi might be tough but they typically require lots of humidity to grow and they also grow rather slowly. Therefore in many household cases there is a chance that food is already either eaten or thrown away before any molds or fungi grow on it.
Moreover, when and if dangerous mycotoxins are present in foods their concentrations are usually far below the recommended safe levels, so make sure you eat foods with cereals or nuts fresh!
Parasites
Parasites are tiny organisms that live symbiotically within a host. Many parasites have multiple life stages and “travel” from host to host during their lifetime.
As a lot of parasites have domestic animals such as cows and pigs as their intermediate hosts humans easily contract them by ingesting their meat.
One good example of a nasty parasite infection is the tapeworm infection. The tapeworm larvae can be contracted by eating raw or undercooked meat. When ingested they hook themselves in the digestive tract, where they can live for years, eating off your food and growing into a very large adult tapeworm.
If you are not convinced that parasites are a real risk to food hygiene you can read more on tapeworm infection in its respective article in Wikipedia.
The good news
Parasites can only be found in raw or undercooked food. Therefore it is generally safer to overcook rather than undercook your food and generally when in doubt, just cook it a bit more to avoid parasites.
Harmful bacteria and the toxins they produce
Harmful bacteria are arguably the most dangerous of all food hygiene hazards. Bacteria are microorganisms that can be found in almost everything, even within our own bodies. Some types of bacteria can be very harmful if ingested in large concentrations through spoiled food.
What is even more frightening is that some bacteria can survive heat processing by creating a tiny spore out of themselves, which will grow again into a full bacterium if given the chance and suitable environment.
However, possibly the worst thing about bacteria is that some of them produce toxins, including the most harmful neurotoxin ever discovered. Those toxins can only be destroyed in extreme temperatures and therefore are unaffected by cooking. While everything we discussed so far, parasites, fungi and bacteria can die with enough cooking, you literally have to burn your food by cooking in unrealistically high temperatures for an unrealistic amount of time to get rid of toxins.
Most common of all harmful food bacteria are the coliform bacteria which include the well-known E.Coli in its various types while arguably the most dangerous one is Clostridium botulinum which under suitable circumstances can produce Botulinum toxin, the most powerful neurotoxin known to man.
The good news
All harmful bacteria are killed by cooking and no harmful bacteria can grow on food that is stored in the refrigerator.
Also, bacteria need ideal conditions to produce their toxins. Therefore by making sure you maintain good food hygiene standards you can guarantee that no bacteria will produce toxins in your food.
So between good cooking and efficient food storage you can maintain good food hygiene and have little to fear from bacteria and their nasty toxins.
Bathing and washing one’s body is one of the most important things we can do ourselves for maintaining good health and protecting ourselves from many infections and diseases as well as keeping any unpleasant odors away. Along with all the health benefits, maintaining a clean body has numerous social and emotional benefits as well.
How frequently should we wash our bodies?
This is a hotly debated issue among dermatologists and healthcare professionals. Most experts agree that soap and other cleaning products should not be used on your body more than once a day to avoid irritating the skin or unbalancing its natural pH. It is generally considered safe to bathe in warm water without using any cleaning products more than once a day.
Bathing vs. Showering
Although the choice between bathing and showering depends mostly on personal preference there are some key differences between the two.
Healthcare specialists generally agree that showering is more efficient that bathing when it comes to removing dirt from our bodies. Moreover a typical shower takes less time than the average bath and during that time less water is used too.
On the other hand, bathing is more relaxing for our muscles and allows us to inspect our bodies from up close for moles, skin irritations, swells or any health issues that might be of concern.
After a Shower or Bath
After a shower or bath we must make sure that we use our own dry towel to dry ourselves. The importance of using dry, clean, personal towels cannot be overstated for personal hygiene. Bacteria will multiply on a wet towel and infections can be spread rapidly if many people use the same towel.
If sponges, massage devices or other “extras” were used while bathing we must make sure they are cleaned and dried properly so they are safe to be used the next time. Bathing sponges specifically should be changed frequently as residual dirt accumulates inside them and bacteria will eventually grow in it.
Hygiene in general can be described as a set of principles that aim to promote and preserve health and healthy living at a personal as well as a societal level.
Simply put, hygiene is all about keeping people, animals, items and places clean and healthy.
The main aspects of Hygiene are broken down and explained below:
Personal Hygiene
Personal hygiene is the principle of maintaining a clean body along with practices of personal care and grooming oneself.
There are lots of different topics and aspects of Personal Hygiene and you check more info about Personal Hygiene in our “What is Personal Hygiene?” article.
Food Hygiene
Food Hygiene is of great importance for everyone’s health and a lot of responsibility around food hygiene falls on people who cook food for others. One must know both how to maintain a clean kitchen as well as telling fresh food from food that has gone bad and might pose health risks.
You can start learning more about Food Hygiene in our Food Hygiene Basics article.
Animal Hygiene
Owning and playing with pets is a rewarding pastime for young and old alike. However many people are not aware of the numerous health hazards that household pets pose when handled with no consideration to any hygiene standards.
If you are interested to know more about Animal Hygiene you can start by reading our Animal Hygiene Basics article.
