Food poisoning is on the rise and the majority of people do not even know that they have been struck down with food poisoning so many cases go unchecked which leaves the door open for more people to be poisoned by the same place over time. A lot of food poisoning takes place in the HOME which is something that people do not even think about but it does happen on a regular basis and especially with items like chicken left over from the Sunday dinner.

Main Causes of Food Poisoning
Undercooking
Raw food consumed
Sick food handlers
Not cooling food properly
Cross contamination
Contaminated canned food
Food not being reheated properly
Food being cooked and left at room temperature for too long
Defrosting too quick
If you work in the food industry your responsibilities as a food handler are greater than you realize as the public are relying on purchasing food from your establishment that is safe, you must always remember that you can pass on germs when you handle food. To prevent this you should always wash your hands with soap and warm water and a quick wash will not do, a good soap around and in between your fingers is the way to get rid of the germs that find places to hide on your hands.

The obvious time to wash your hands are after using the toilet, before starting work, after breaks, after handling raw food and handling rubbish.

Never put off telling your boss about any sickness you have because your sickness could be caused by a germ and you would be taking a big risk with everyone that you come into contact with so it would be advisable to seek medical advice to be on the safe side.

Symptoms to Look Out for are:
Sick while on holiday
Diarrhoea
Vomiting
Infected sores or cuts
Family member has diarrhoea
Good Hygiene Practice List
Keep your work area and any items you are using clean.
No chewing gum, smoking or spitting when handling food.
Clean work clothes.
Wash hands at the appropriate times.
Tell your employer if you are ill.
Always use bright coloured plasters that are waterproof if you have a cut.
If medical attention is sought make sure that you mention that you work in the food industry.

How long you keep certain foods in your fridge
Vegetables
Vegetables should be kept at room temperature and not in the fridge as they can over ripe in the fridge and shrivel up. Vegetables should be consumed within 2 days as vegetables do go off very quickly.

Fruit
Bananas cannot be kept in the fridge as they tend to go black, apples can be kept in a fridge but only for a week and oranges and strawberries should be stored at room temperature.

Bread
Bread should not be kept in the fridge as it hardens the bread and bread should be kept in a bread bin or somewhere dry to keep the bread soft.

Eggs
Always keep your eggs in the back of your fridge to keep a regular temperature rather than keeping your eggs in the door as you continuously open your fridge door which changes the temperature for any food item sitting there.

Raw meat and fish
These items need to kept away from cooked and other perishable items to avoid contamination, the best place to place raw foods is the bottom of your fridge.

Cooked meat and fish
If you have leftovers they can be put into a freezer and eaten within a couple of days.

Cheese
Unopened cheese can last as long as two weeks but once opened and placed in the fridge it must be consumed within seven days.

By following these basic rules you could stop food poisoning in it’s tracks.

食物中毒數量正在上升，大多數人甚至不知道他們已經食物中毒了，這么多案例沒有經過查驗，使得大門仍然敞開著，隨著時間的推移使得更多的人在同樣情況下受到毒害。許多食物中毒發生在家里，人們甚至沒有想到這回事，但這確實經常發生，特別是象周日宴會剩下的雞肉引起的一類食物中毒。

食物中毒的主要原因
食物未熟
生吃食物
烹飪者生病
冷藏食物不當
交叉污染
污染的罐頭食品
重新加熱食物不當
食品烹飪后室溫下存放時間過長
解凍時間短
如果你在食品行業工作，你作為一個食品加工者的職責要比你認識到公眾需要從你的公司購買安全食品更為重大，你要時刻記住你加工食品時可能傳播細菌。為防止這種情況發生，你要經常用肥皂和溫水洗手，蜻蜓點水式的沖洗是不行的，在手上和指間好好打上肥皂是除掉藏在你手上的細菌的好辦法。

上廁所后、開始工作前、休息后、加工生的食品后以及處理完垃圾后都是必須洗手的時刻。

永遠不要推遲報告老板你患的任何疾病，因為你的病可能是細菌引起的，你可能帶給要接觸的人很大的威脅，因此遵從醫學上的建議，不去冒險是明智的。

需要注意的征兆:
節日期間生病
腹瀉
嘔吐
感染的傷口
家庭成員腹瀉
良好的衛生習慣
保持工作區域和用具清潔
加工食品時不要嚼口香糖或吐痰。
清洗工作服。
適時洗手。
告訴雇主你病了。
如果你有傷口，要用防水的有鮮艷顏色的橡皮膏。
如果去進行醫學處理，一定要提到你在食品行業工作。
某些食品冰箱內的保存時間

蔬菜
蔬菜應在室溫下保存，不要放在冰箱內，因為它們在冰箱里能過分熟化和枯萎。蔬菜要在2天內用完，因為蔬菜變質很快。

水果
香蕉不要放在冰箱里，因為它們容易變黑，蘋果可以放進冰箱，但僅限于一周時間，桔子和草莓需要在室溫下存放。

 面包
面包不要放在冰箱里，因為它能夠使面包變硬，面包要放在面包柜里或干燥的地方，以保持柔軟。

雞蛋
要把雞蛋放在冰箱后面以保持恒溫，而不是放在冰箱里面，因為你不斷開冰箱門能夠改變存放在那里食品溫度，

生的肉和魚
這些東西需要和熟的及其它易腐爛的食品分開，以避免污染，放置生食品的最好地方是冰箱的底部。

 熟的肉和魚
如果你有吃剩的肉和魚，把它們放進冷凍室，并要在兩天內吃完。

奶酪
未開封的奶酪能保存兩周的時間，然而一旦開封并放進了冰箱，必須在七天內使用。

遵循這些基本原則，你就能從半路阻止食品中毒。