Many of us have the impression that storing our foods in the refrigerator will keep them fresh and safe. But, not having your appliance set at the right temperature can create a breeding ground for harmful bacteria to grow and flourish, which can result in an unsafe environment for food storage for you and your kids.
Improper food storage and sanitation can lead to a high risk of foodborne illnesses, especially this rainy season. Among these diseases is listeriosis, a serious infection caused by eating food with the bacterium Listeria monocytogenes.
Listeriosis can be dangerous to pregnant women, newborns, children, and elderly, and can result to fever, muscle aches, or even gastrointestinal symptoms such as nausea or diarrhea.
As such, refrigerating a food contaminated with Listeria can cause it to spread to other food products inside the refrigerator that may be making your child prone to sickness.
The good news, however, is that there are various ways we can do to reduce the risk of listeriosis at home by raising an awareness on proper refrigerator care to help improve the quality of food that you and your kids eat.
Consume Use-By Date food products immediately
Use-by date refers to the final day by which perishable goods should be consumed. After the recommended date, food quality is likely to go down and the food safety is lessened.
Therefore, it is important to make sure that food products are eaten before their use by date and not after.
You may realize that use-by date products spoil easily. Thus, it is crucial for you to follow storage instructions. However, take note that you should follow the use by dates on unopened ready-to-eat food products and not store food packages after they have been opened. Storing opened food products in the refrigerator can increase the risk of Listeria to grow.
