Snack safe: How to avoid getting sick from Thanksgiving leftovers

Snack safe: How to avoid getting sick from Thanksgiving leftovers

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SALT LAKE CITY — After a day of giving thanks, more than 400,000 Americans are paying homage to the porcelain throne every year, as improper food handling leads to food poisoning.

"Food safety doesn't stop once the meal is prepared," said Andrea Gamble, food protection supervisor at the Salt Lake County Health Department. "How you handle the food after the meal is equally important."

The local health department, as well as the United States Food and Drug Administration and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and their partnering organization, foodsafety.gov, are pushing the "leftover alert" again this year, to help people avoid getting sick.

With the advisory comes a reminder that hot foods should stay hot and cold foods stay cold.

Other tips including proper hand-washing, avoiding cross-contamination of foods — using separate cutting boards and preparation utensils for vegetables and fruits and meats, as well as raw and cooked products — and, refrigerating foods as soon as possible.

"Parties, family dinners and other gatherings where food is served are all part of the holiday cheer. But the merriment can change to misery if food makes you or others ill," the FDA reports. It specifically details how to keep safe while thawing, handling, stuffing, cooking and serving the turkey, which, because of its size, is often a big part of repeat meals following the holiday festivities.

The National Turkey Federation reports that 228 million turkeys are sold throughout the holiday season, and 88 percent of Americans eat turkey on Thanksgiving Day. The group offers recipes for leftover use, but urges caution with handling and storage of various popular foods, including the turkey.

Gamble recommends what she calls the "two hours, two inches, four days" formula: prepared foods should not be left out of the refrigerator more than two hours; foods chill better when only 2 inches thick; and, leftovers should be eaten within four days of the Thanksgiving Day feast.

Anything kept longer than that, she said, should be frozen.

Frozen turkey pieces, she said, can stay good for four months, stuffing and gravy for one month and cooked dishes or casseroles made with leftover turkey can maintain quality for four to six months in the freezer.

The CDC reports that meat and poultry account for 92 percent of food poisoning outbreaks, most of which occur in the country between November and December.

Foods left unrefrigerated for more than two hours run the risk of quick multiplication of harmful bacteria. Ingesting the harmful bacteria can lead to a variety of unpleasant symptoms, lasting hours to days, but not typically requiring medical treatment.

Food-borne illnesses can be more severe and even life-threatening for at-risk individuals, including pregnant women, people with compromised immune systems, small children and the elderly, according to the FDA.

Symptoms of food poisoning include, but are not limited to, vomiting and diarrhea.

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Wendy Leonard

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