Food hazards and food borne illness

Bacteria

Simple microscopic life forms that are responsible for many foodborne illnesses. Invisible life forms that live on and in our bodies throughout the natural world.

Protozoa

Single celled microorganism such as giardiasis lamlia and cryptosporidium parvum which often infect water

When do the symptoms of food borne illness start

Few hours to several days after eating contaminated food. They last for 24 to 48 hours but continue for a week or more.

Foods linked to allergic reaction

Flour, nuts, seeds, shellfish, food dyes, flavor enhancer, milk, chocolate and fruit

Pathogen

Organisms that cause disease

Contamination

Presence of something harmful or objectionable in food or drink that could cause illness injury or discomfort. The start of food borne illness.

Parasites in food business

Roundworm, flatworm, Protozoa

Potable

Safe for humans to drink

Contaminant

Any substance or object in food that makes the food harmful or objectionable. (Adulterant)

Food borne hazard

Anything that can harm consumers by causing illness injury or discomfort

Parasite

A life form that lives on another life form. Organisms that depends on another organism to survive and reproduce. They live on or inside human and animal bodies.

Toxin

A poison produced by some living organisms, such as bacteria molds and algae

Food allergen

A substance in food that causes an allergic reaction with symptoms ranging from mild to life threatening. An immune system response to a particular protein in food. Symptoms similar to food borne illnesses. Other symptoms include rashes, difficult breathing, swelling of mouth and throat, collapsed and unconsciousness.

Microorganism (microbe)

A very small organism including bacteria, viruses, molds, yeasts and some parasites

Food borne illness symptoms

Abdominal pain, diarrhea, vomiting, nausea fever and headache

Viruses

An extremely small, highly infectious pathogen, they do not depend on food for survival. Anything we eat and drink could be contaminated. Damages living body cells.

Toxin mediated infection

An illness caused by eating live pathogens that make toxins as they live in stomach or intestines.

Organism

An independent life form

Types of hazards

Biological, physical, chemical

Examples of physical food borne hazards

Broken glass or crockery, packaging materials (string, paper, staples), leaves, stalks, scales, feathers and fragments of shell or bone, nuts, bolts screws from machinery or equipment, Jewelry, hair, fingernails, fragments of nail polish, buttons, pen top and waterproof bandages from food handlers, dust and dirt from the air, rubbish or unclean equipment, bodies of pests and their eggs, dropping or nest material

Food borne infection

Caused by eating food contaminated by live pathogenic bacteria (salmonella) the bacteria makes you I'll as it lives and multiply in your body.

Viral infection

Caused by eating food contaminated with viruses. (Hepatitis A,noroviruses, rotavirus.

Examples of chemical food borne hazards

Cleaning and sanitizing products, machine oils that are not food safe, pesticides, excessive quantities of food additives, dissolved metals from inappropriate use of metal containers.

What illnesses do viruses cause

Cold, flu, food borne virus(hepatitis A) and infections from other food borne viruses-rota viruses, noroviruses, and small round structured viruses(srsvs)

Roundworm

Example is trichina- found in hogs and can affect humans who have eaten it. Also found in anisakis from cod and herring

Contaminated food

Food that could be harmful to health because it contains something that should not be there

Flat worms

Found in beef pork, fish and flukes

Helpful bacteria

Grow crops, digest food we eat, make foods(yogurt,cheese,carbonated drinks), treat sewage, develop new foods, create medicine, manufacture laundry and cleaning products.

Vehicle of contamination

Hands, utensils, or tools that can carry microorganism onto food causing contamination

Three heading bacteria can be considered under

Helpful, pathogenic and spoilage

Fungi

Mushrooms and microscopic molds and yeasts. Naturally occurring poisons and parasites. Cause fewer cases of food borne illness than pathogenic bacteria

Food intolerance

Not same as allergy, it's a sensitivity to a food or an inability to digest a food and is rarely life threatening.

Mycotoxins

Particular type of toxin(aflatoxin and ergot) on foods such as rye other cereal and nuts especially peanuts. Not destroyed by cooking

The fad food code states that

Persons in charge of a food establishments must be able to demonstrate knowledge of major food allergen and include food allergy awareness in their awareness in their training of others

Where do pathogenic bacteria come from

Raw food, water, soil, people, pests and pets, air, dust dirt and food waste

Naturally poisonous fish and plants

Reef fish(amberjack,barracuda,grouper,mackerel and snapper) become contaminated with ciguatera toxin by eating smaller fish that have fed on toxic marine algae. Fish not affected but poison people that eat it

Contamination

The presence in food of any harmful or objectionable substance or object

Spoilage

The process by which food becomes unwholesome. A type of bacteria that makes food spoil. Food that is putrid or decomposed.(decaying,deteriorating or going bad)

Onset(incubation period)

The time it takes for the symptoms of a food borne illness to start after contaminated food has been eaten.

Multiplying

The way bacteria reproduce and increase their numbers.

How do viruses reproduce

They invade the cells of a living host

Examples of biological food borne hazards

Viruses, parasites(tapeworm, roundworm and Protozoa), fungi(mold yeast), naturally occurring poison (plants,fish,mushrooms), mycotoxins