Food production and food preparation are things that many students don't think about in their daily lives. These elements of the cooking and eating process, however, are some of the most dangerous when it comes to the risk of food-borne pathogens and gastrointestinal illness.
Infection!
Most people have heard of bacterial infections like E. coli or salmonella, but there are other food-poisoning agents out there that can cause equal, if not greater, damage to a student's health, explained James Turner, executive director of Student Health.
Food poisonings, as many food-borne illnesses are described, generally cause intense stomach pain, Turner said.
"Usually it is a gastrointestinal disease," Turner said. "Those again will cause vomiting, diarrhea and severe abdominal" discomfort.
Common food illnesses can be caused by bacterial infection, viral infection, parasitic infection or even toxins, said Eric S. Myers, an environmental health specialist senior at the Virginia Department of Health.
"The viral [infections] can come from when food is out on display or being prepared by an ill worker," Myers said.
According to the WebMD Web site, bacterial and parasitic contamination can occur in food processing, food handling or food growth.
"If things are improperly cooked, then certain pathogens can survive the cooking process, like E. coli, that can set up an infection in a person's body," Myers said. "That infection can cause serious illness,"
Myers pointed to the hepatitis A virus as a potentially problematic illness contracted from improper hygiene related to food preparation.
"Hep A is highly contagious and it affects the liver and liver functions and may lead to serious illness," Myers said.
Myers also warned against other common food poisoning ailments such as "clostridium perfringens," a type of bacteria known for its spore form.
"The spores can germinate into vegetative bacterial cells ... which then release a toxin," Myers said.
According to Turner, the last major food poisoning case in the University community involved the Norwalk virus, commonly known as the cruise ship virus. The incident was caused by contaminated food isolated to a "bowl of chips" at a restaurant, he said.
University Dining Services has not dealt with food poisoning issues, Turner said.
"We have never had a problem with students contracting food-borne illness from University dining facilities," he said. "The people that run the dining facilities do an excellent job with hygiene and cleaning."
Student Health does occasionally receive patients that have contracted a food-related illness, either at home or out at a restaurant, Turner said.
Keepin' it clean in the kitchen
Turner recommended students always practice good hygiene and stay cognizant of kitchen sanitation when cooking -- this is particularly true when dealing with poultry or other animal-related items.
"The key to proper food preparation is cleanliness ... clean kitchen, counters, cooking utensils," Turner said. "Thorough preparation in cooking is important, especially with poultry ... with raw meat and raw eggs."
Cross-contamination is often a factor in food illness, explained Myers.
"If you're preparing raw meats and they come in cross-contact with ready-to-eat food, something that is not going to be heat-treated, like a salad, there is no thermal destruction of bacteria," Myers said.
Myers suggested that students also purchase a digital thermometer for cooking meats.
"On the home side, sometimes people don't understand that they have to cook meats to a proper temperature," Myers said. "It's a great idea to ... make sure you reach target temperatures that will allow any pathogenic bacteria to be destroyed or reduced."
Completely cooked poultry should be 165 degrees Fahrenheit, whereas ground beef and pork should reach a temperature of 155 degrees Fahrenheit, Myers said. For fish and egg products the temperature should be about 145 Fahrenheit.
Improperly cooking food isn't the only way to potentially contract sickness in the kitchen; Myers said the cooling of foods can also be a risk factor.
"Another thing that students can do at home is to cool [food] rapidly and not let them cool for a long time," Myers said. "Otherwise you keep foods in the 'temperature danger zone,' forty-one to one hundred and thirty-five degrees Fahrenheit."
Dr. Turner noted that mayonnaise-based products, such as potato salad or coleslaw, can be potentially harmful if not properly cooled.
"Students need to be careful during Foxfield or tailgates to keep mayonnaise-based products cool or on ice," he said.
Myer recommended that students think about taking a cooler to the grocery store when purchasing refrigerated items, so that their food would stay safe on the trek back home.
Eating out
For students who are on the go or perhaps lacking in culinary abilities, a large number also head to the Corner or out into Charlottesville to grab a bite.
According to Myers, the health department checks out local eating establishments to see if they are following food preparation guidelines.
"In the commercial realm, we look for what we call 'risk factors', these are things that have been proven by the Centers for Disease Control to be the cause of the majority of the food-borne illness," Myers said. "These are things like poor hand-washing, poor temperature control, contaminated equipment or cross-contamination and food from an unapproved source, meaning something that was not made by a commercial operator like home-canned products."
Myers said another common "risk factor" is a sick employee working with a restaurant's food.
The Charlottesville Health Department has been working with local food service industries to teach food managers, servers and cooks about proper ways to store and prepare food, Myers said.
"Education is a huge thing on the commercial side, and we work routinely with operators about how to reduce those factors that cause illness," he said. "We've put much greater emphasis on having a designated person in charge, a certified manager who has been trained in food safety in overseeing the food processes."
If a student were to be infected while eating out, Myers suggested that he or she contact a physician and also the health department, so as to isolate the cause of the food poisoning incident.
A food log is also a good idea for someone who thinks he has contracted food poisoning, Myers said.
"It's really important that they provide their doctor or the health department with a three-day food history," he said. "Saving a sample of the food can also help" when trying to find the contaminated culprit.
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