A recent interview with a food safety expert shows that you just can't trust some foods.
The constant reports of outbreaks of listeria, E.coli, and other potentially deadly diseases from foods is enough to worry anyone — and there are six foods you should always avoid to dramatically reduce your risk.
Food poisoning expert Bob Marler — who is part of litigation against Chipotle Mexican Grill after the restaurant’s long list of connections to food poisoning cases — has won $600 million for clients since 1993, and he recently posted an article in the Food Poisoning Journal about six foods he won’t eat ever again due to concerns about being poisoned himself.
1) Don’t buy packaged juices or drink unpasteurized milk. Marler noted that a total of 148 food poisoning outbreaks have been limited to raw milk products, which can be filled with bacteria and viruses — a huge number considering how few people actually drink raw milk. And unpasteurized packaged juices can be just as dangerous.
2) Raw sprouts are a popular item in produce sections of grocery stores, but they’re also dangerous when uncooked or only lightly cooked. A total of 30 bacterial outbreaks of salmonella and E.coli have happened since the mid-1990s, including an outbreak of salmonella in 2014 that resulted in 19 people being hospitalized.
3) This next one may be a bit more difficult for people to swallow: rare or even medium-rare meat. Marler said he’ll eat his meat well-done, even beef, especially ground beef which can have bacteria ground inside of it. Even steaks are not safe, as restaurants often pierce the steak with utensils or needles to make it more tender, transferring bacteria from surfaces into the meat. But he is OK with a medium-well steak, as long as he knows he’s at a restaurant that doesn’t do this.
4) Bagged, prewashed fruits and vegetables should be avoided, he said. Marler said this is a particularly bad idea, as the more food is handled and processed, the more likely bacteria is to get inside. The convenience just isn’t worth it, he argues.
5) Avoid the sunny-side-up eggs, Marler said. Eggs are always a big risk of salmonella, so eat your eggs well-cooked. If not, you’re playing with fire when it comes to food poisoning.
6) Sorry, shellfish lovers, raw oysters should be avoided as well. Raw shellfish, especially oysters, are often linked to foodborne illnesses, as microbial growths tend to happen in the warm waters in which these oysters live.
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