Food safety tips to keep you and your family safe all year long

ALPENA, Mich. – According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) nearly 48 million people or one in six contract foodborne illnesses and out of those cases, many happen after eating your holiday dinner. So let’s talk about food safety to keep you and your family safe over the holidays and beyond.

Although you may be stuffed from your Christmas dinner, you’re still, cooking, baking and eating those leftovers….
that’s why health experts say it’s still important to understand food safety and preparation.

Registered Clinical Dietitian and Nutrition Support Specialist Lana Scales said knowing the “danger zone ” is key to your food staying safe.

“You wanna keep hot food hot and cold food cold,” said Scales. “What that means is that danger zone is 140–40 degrees Fahrenheit. So you want to keep that food out the danger zone.”

Scales said that your home could also play a part in your foods temperatures.

“If you’re in a home and the oven is going, the stove is going; you have bodies in the kitchen, that means the temperature can rise in the kitchen. If you have a warmer kitchen, then that two hour mark with food sitting out may not apply,” said Scales.

If foods sit out too long it can cause microorganisms to grow or proliferate. Scales said that’s certainly not what you want.

“When you leave it sitting out, or it’s not cooked properly, the bacteria that’s already there in that food they get a chance to say “hey I want more of me in here”, said scales. “It’ll grow and it’d be too much of that bacteria in that food that can make someone sick with e–coli, listeria and things of that nature.”

There are many resources and guidelines available online to help. Scales also recommends you buy a food thermometer as well.

She stresses to make sure your food temperatures are safe before you freeze any leftovers. It is possible for bacteria to lie dormant in food that wasn’t cooked properly, or sat for too long even while frozen. Scales said the danger zone of 140–40 degrees Fahrenheit is important to remember.

If you believe you may have food poisoning, you are advised to call your healthcare provider or 911.