Food Safety Management Principles: Part 2 - Food Hazards and Foodborne Illness

Foodborne Intoxication

An illness caused by toxins in food

Pathogen

An organism that causes disease

foodborne illness

Any illness caused by eating contaminated food. Foodborne infections, foodborne intoxications and toxin-mediated infections come under this heading.

Contaminant

Any substance or object in food that makes the food harmful or objectionable. The word 'adulterant' is also sometimes used.

Food-Contact Surface

Any surface that is touched by food

Hand-Contact Surface

Any surface that is touched by food

T or F? Most pathogenic bacteria need A^w to be equal to or above 0.89 in order to multiply.

False

T or F? Physical and chemical hazards cause the greatest number of food safety problems.

False

Contaminated Food

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

Vehicle of Contamination

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

What is a 'food-contact surface'?

It is any surface that touches food

Do viruses depend upon a particular type of food for their survival?

No

Are all types of bacteria harmful?

No, not all bacteria...

Ambient Temperature

Ordinary room temperature

What is not a highly susceptible population?

Professional athletes

Bacteria

Simple, microscopic life forms that are responsible for many foodborne illnesses. The word 'bacteria' indicates more than one 'bacterium'.

Onset (or Incubation Period)

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

Multiplying, multiplication

The way bacteria reproduce and increase their numbers. This is sometimes referred to as bacterial growth in numbers

Dehydrate

To dry out

What are the most common symptoms of foodborne illnesses?

- Abdominal pain - Diarrhea - Vomiting - Nausea - Othe signs include fever and headache

Time/Temperature control for safety foods include:

- Milk and dairy products - Cut melons -Raw seed sprouts and soy products

Where do pathogenic bacteria come from?

- Raw Food - Water - People

What are highly susceptible populations?

- The elderly - Pregnant women and unborn babies - Breast-fed babies and the very young - People who are ill, recovering from illness or who have weakened immune systems (immunocompromised)

According to the FDA, the temperature 'danger zone' is?

5 Degrees C - 60 Degrees C (41 Degrees F - 135 Degrees F)

Parasite

A life form (organism) that lives on another life form

Dormant

A period of inactivity when bacteria do not multiply

Toxin

A posion produced by some living organism, such as bacteria, molds, and algae

Spore

A protective coating formed by some bacteria to help them survive adverse conditions such as cooking or drying

Food Allergen

A substance in food that causes an allergic reaction with symptoms ranging from mild to life threatening

Microorganism (or microbe)

A very small (micro) life form (organism), including bacteria, viruses, molds, yeasts and some parasites

Virus

An extremely small, highly infectious, pathogen

Toxin-Mediated Infection

An illness caused by eating live pathogens that make toxins as they live in the stomach or intestine

Organism

An independent life form

Hazard

Anything that could cause harm to the consumer. Foodborne hazards are biological, chemical or physical

Pathogenic

Description of an organism that causes disease

T or F? The most common symptoms of foodborne illness are a headache, abdominal pain, diarrhea, and vomiting.

False

Time/Temperature Controls for Safety Foods (TCS) Foods

Foods that need time/temperature that need time/temperature control because they support the rapid growth of pathogenic microorganisms or the formation of toxins

Ready-to-eat foods

Foods which are edible without prepartion or treatment, such as washing or cooking, immediaterly before they are eaten

The time it takes for the symptoms of a foodborne illness to start after contaminated food has been eaten is known as?

Onset (or incubation period)

What is not an example of a biological foodborne disease?

Pesticides

Pathofen

Safe for humans to drink

Potable

Safe for humans to drink

Contamination

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

Binary Fission

The process by which bacteria multiply by spliting in two

Spoilage

The process by which food becomes unwholesome. The process of causing damage. Spoilage bacteria make food deteriorate

Danger Zone

The temperature range 5 Degrees C to 57 Degrees C (41 Degrees F to 135 Degrees F) in which pathogenic bacteria multiply most rapidly

Multiply

To reproduce

T or F? A toxin-mediated infection is an illness caused by eating food contaminated by certain live pathogenic bacteria that make toxins as they live in the stomach or intestine.

True

T or F? According to recent analysis Norovirus may cause most cases of known foodborn illnesses.

True

Are mycotoxins not destroyed by cooking?

Yes