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There is old English saying “Food cooked with passion and served with love tastes divine.” Trust me, it is true even today! Every food enthusiast (like you and me) is well aware that the soul of any good recipe resides in the right blend of spices and fresh natural ingredients.

But we might sometimes miss upon an even more important ingredient while cooking food, and which more often than not tampers with the soul of our recipe. Yes, I am talking about food safety & hygiene. One has to be very careful while handling food and maintain the highest level of hygiene and food safety in our kitchen and home. Chiicmagazine

Food contamination can occur at any stage, be it harvesting, processing, preparation, storage or transportation. Foodborne diseases are often common where low standards of hygiene are used. According to data released by World Health Organization, every year foodborne disease causes almost one in ten people to fall ill. These diseases can be deadly especially in children.

There are a few basic rules to be followed while handling food: Clean: Wash hands and surfaces often. Separate: Don’t cross-contaminate. Cook: Cook to the right temperature. Chill: Refrigerate promptly. Clean: Wash hands and surfaces often.

One must wash one’s hands thoroughly with soap before coming in contact with food. This eliminates transfer of germs from your hands to the food. One must wash all vegetables and fruits with cold water before using them. Kitchen counters and surfaces are the key places which if dirty can contaminate food. These places must be sanitized thoroughly along with equipment used for preparing food. In case you are sick or down with cold and flu you must avoid cooking and handling food. When someone has the symptoms of diarrhea, vomiting or jaundice, they should stay away from the workplace.

And if they have a sore throat and fever, they should be restricted from preparing and serving food. This is alarming because these people potentially could have spread disease to the people who consume the foods their establishments were serving. Martin Bucknavage, extension food-safety specialist says, “Foodborne pathogens such as Nor virus, Hepatitis A and Sheila often are spread by sick workers to restaurant patrons through the food.

 These recommendations are not just for foodservice or retail food establishments but also for people who cook for their families and those who work in child care or elder-care facilities. The use of hand sanitizers and tissue paper should be encouraged in all age groups.

The Standard American Diet (SAD) is lacking in many vital nutritional components. Being largely composed of prepackaged, convenience foods with few naturally grown food products; this diet has contributed to an epidemic of not only obesity but also extreme nutritional deficiency. America can be found in Whole Food Supplements which are vitamin, mineral and phytonutrient rich products made from actual food concentrates.

 In the first part of the 1900’s most Americans ate a healthy, whole food diet because they had no choice. All food was grown either by the family or obtained from immediately local sources. America in the 1900’s was a largely agrarian society with most people living in rural areas and able to grow their own food.

 During the last century, a massive migration to urban areas has occurred. This has meant that even if one has the desire, most people no longer have the ability to produce self grown food. Either because there is no land. Because many do not know how very few people have a garden and even fewer produce protein in the form of dairy products and animal husbandry.

In spite of this developing migration, during World War II, families were encouraged to have a “victory garden”. sn2world

Beginning around the 1950’s, Americans did begin to recognize the value of vitamins and minerals within their diet. This was discovered because more and more pre-prepared, highly processed food products became available and nutritional deficiencies began to emerge. After the end of World War II, many families became two-income families. In addition, many more single parents are now raising children by themselves. This means that in most homes, all of the adults present in any one household are likely employed outside of the home full-time leaving little time for food preparation alone much less any time for food production.

 America has become a convenience food nation consuming much of the diet from unnatural food sources. Prepackaged and easy to prepare food products are just that, food “products”. Though they may contain carbohydrates, proteins, fats and some “essential” nutrients, they are not real food.

 The entire food supply chain is rife with contamination and chemical processing and many Americans are unaware of how little nutritional value the food that they consume every day contains. So much publicity and education has focused on the so called food pyramid. The governmental and educational agencies that have devised the perfect American diet have never truly addressed the lack of nutrients, other than the Recommended Daily Allowance (RDA) of basic vitamins and minerals.