‘Tis the season to be merry where lots of food will be prepared and enjoyed with loved ones.
This comes after the National Health Department announced the listeriosis outbreak throughout the country last week.
Listeriosis is food poisoning caused by eating foods contaminated with the Listeria Monocytogenes bacterium.
The bacterium is found in vegetation, soil, water and some animals, including poultry and cattle.
It can also be found in unpasteurised milk and food made from unpasteurised milk.
Through cooking and pasteurisation it can be killed.
The following precautionary measures should be taken to prevent the disease:
• No drinking unpasteurised milk or eating food containing unpasteurised milk;
• Wash hands, knives, counter tops and cutting boards after handling and preparing uncooked foods;
• Rinse raw vegetables thoroughly before eating;
• Keep uncooked meat, poultry, and seafood separate from vegetables, fruit, cooked food and ready-to-eat food;
• Thoroughly cook raw food from animal sources – such as meat, poultry, or seafood – to a safe internal temperature.
• Heat hot dogs, cold cuts and deli meats before eating them.
Symptoms of listeriosis include fever, muscle aches and sometimes nausea or diarrhoea.
If infection spreads to the nervous system, symptoms such as headache, stiff neck, confusion, loss of balance, or convulsions can occur.
Seek medical help should you experience any of these symptoms after consuming unpasteurised foods.
Also read: Dems advises caution in the rainy weather
South Africa’s education crisis at a glance
Water Wednesday: Department of Water and Sanitation to issue update on defaulting municipalities
Follow us:
