Foodborne diseases loom as temperatures rise

It’s that time of year – temperatures are increasing, the sun is coming out, and grills and picnic baskets are being taken out of storage.

But beware.

“Foodborne illnesses generally increase in the summer,” said Shelley Feist, executive director of Partnership for Food Safety Education.

There are two main causes of  foodborne illness (or food poisoning), according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture:

1. Natural: “Bacteria are present throughout the environment in soil, air, water and in the bodies of people and animals – these microorganisms grow fastest at temperatures from 90 to 100 degrees” and in moisture – making the hot, humid Chicago summer a perfect breeding ground.

2. People: Outside activities increase in the summer – more people are cooking outside – “The safety controls that a kitchen provides, such as refrigeration and washing facilities, are not usually available.”

“When you are talking about the consumer, you have to take into account the fact that the food has already gone through the retail chain,” said Michael Ollinger, an economic researcher at the USDA Economic Research Service who specializes in industrial food safety. “Pathogens can be introduced there.”

However, he said, “a major source of contamination is the consumer himself.”

In the United States, an estimated 76 million cases of foodborne illness occur each year, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

“Temperature is a critical factor in food safety,” said Feist. She explained that bacteria thrive between 40 and 140 degrees and that some bacteria can even grow at cooler temperatures.

Ollinger recommended cooking all meat to at least 160 degrees and putting perishable food items in the refrigerator more quickly because the increased temperatures cause faster spoilage and an increased rate of bacteria growth.

Feist recommends a four-step system of practicing safe food handling.

1. Clean: “Always wash hands and surfaces often.”

2. Separate: “Avoid cross-contamination by cleaning hands, not reusing the same utensils and cutting boards for raw meat and fruits and vegetables.”

3. Cook: “Cook everything to a safe internal temperature; we advocate using a food thermometer.”

4. Chill: “Refrigerate all food promptly and at 40 degrees or below.”

Common symptoms of foodborne illness includes diarrhea, abdominal cramping, fever, headache, vomiting, severe exhaustion and sometimes blood or pus in the stools, according to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.

“But symptoms can vary quite greatly,” according to Feist, dependent upon which food was eaten and what pathogen contaminated it.

“What people should know is that you generally won’t see symptoms until 12 hours or more after consuming contaminated food,” explained Feist. Unfortunately, she added, this often leads to misidentifying the source of the contamination making it very difficult to pin down outbreaks.

Some symptoms do not even appear until days or weeks after the pathogen has been transferred into the body, according to the FDA.

More than 700 cases of salmonella food poisoning were reported last summer after the Taste of Chicago, and 100 cases of salmonellosis were diagnosed and three people hospitalized due to infection related to a contaminated salad sold at the Taste.

This despite the Chicago Department of Public Health calling the festival the "most intensely regulated food operation in the city," with inspectors detailing each of the more than 70 food booths at least four times a day.