Food poisoning is an illness that occurs when a person eats a food contaminated with a bacteria or other microorganism. The most-common side effect is diarrhea but some people even experience a range of flu-like symptoms from food poisoning. According to the Milton S. Hershey Medical Center, food poisoning affects anywhere from 6 to 33 million Americans every year. It is hard to distinguish which foods cause food poisoning most often in the United States because in many cases the bacteria is discovered, but the food which it came from is never fully traced. Yet certain foods are most likely to cause the most common bacteria food poisonings and therefore, it can be deduced which foods are the most frequent culprits.
Chicken
The Center for Disease Control and Prevention reports that chicken is one of the most-common causes of food poisoning in the United States. Chicken can harbor several different types of dangerous bacteria if not cooked thoroughly. The CDC states that the way chickens are processed for meat in the United States is particularly problematic because the carcass of one chicken can be exposed to the juices of thousands of other chickens in factory farms. This means that if one chicken had a bacteria, many can become infected. One of the most common bacterium in chicken is Campylobacter. According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention Campylobacter causes diarrhea and fevers and usually occurs when undercooked chicken is eaten.
Sprouts
Sprouts are full of vitamins and minerals yet people with low immune system function are often told to avoid them. This is because they often contain harmful bacteria and since sprouts are eaten raw and not cooked, the bacteria never dies. The Center for Disease Control and Prevention states that alfalfa and other sprouts often harvest microbes because of their high moisture content. It may be a safer choice to eat fruits and vegetables that can be washed and peeled like bananas and avocados.
Beef
Beef is another common cause of food poisoning, especially from the E. coli bacteria. The Milton S. Hershey Medical Center explains that ground beef especially, is contaminated with E. coli often because it contains the meat of so many different cows. C. jejuni is another bacterium often found in beef, which is the most-common bacterial cause of diarrhea in the United States, states that Milton S. Hershey Medical Center. It is essential to cook beef to an internal temperature of 140 degrees F or higher before eating it so that microorganisms are destroyed by the heat.
Eggs
Another potential cause of food poisoning in the United States is eggs. Some people consume raw eggs, despite health warnings that they could cause food borne illnesses. Even cooked eggs can cause food poisoning if they are not cooked well enough. The Milton S. Hershey Medical Center states that the most common cause of food poisoning from eggs is salmonella. Salmonella is destroyed if eggs are cooked well enough, however. Eggs are also safest when prepared and eaten at home, since the CDC states that one omelet eaten in a restaurant can contain eggs from many different chickens. This is the reason why food poisoning from eggs is so common.
