Take Safety Into Your Own Hands

Thursday, January 29, 2009

Take Safety Into Your Own Hands

The Government Accountability Office (GAO) has concluded that the Food and Drug Administration as currently structured is inadequate. Surprised? Of course not. The GAO has labeled the FDA's oversight of food safety and medical products, as well as the EPA's control over toxic chemicals, as areas of high risk.

While the Obama Administration is haggling over how best to fix these departments, we have a few suggestions as to how you can, to the best of your ability, control what goes into your mouth and onto your body. Some of these sound simple and redundant, but now more than ever, we must be vigilant about adhering to them.

FOODSTUFFS

Drink filtered water

Eat Locally Grown - less chemicals, less times exchanging hands, less processing, you get the picture

Certified Organic - while they are not immune to food safety issues, the risk is much lower and certified organic foodstuffs contain less chemicals.

The least amount of ingredients in the product, the better. In most cases, this indicates that the foodstuff is real food.

Reduce processed food intake - more ingredients and longer shelf life usually means ingredients that have come from numerous manufacturers all with different food safety practices.

Purchase food well before the expiration date.

Avoid consumption of raw fish, meat, poultry, or dairy.

Use cooked leftovers within two days.

Avoid consuming samples at grocery stores.

FOOD PREPARATION

Whether at home or eating out, make sure your food is cooked through.

Keep eating areas at home and at wok well sanitized.

Add spices and other natural ingredients to your food to stave off bacteria (garlic, onion, basil, ginger, curry, clove, cinnamon, oregano, and sage have been studied for their antimicrobial activity); some of these spices may not be well tolerated by all (especially with salicylate sensitivity).

Keep raw animal food separate from other foods and in sealed bag or container to avoid cross-contamination.

Don't leave raw meat in the refrigerator longer than 2 days; freeze if not using quickly.

Wash fruits and vegetables with cold water filtered before eating; cut away bruised or damaged areas

Never leave food out for over one hour unless it is properly heated/cooled.

MEDICATIONS

Do not take any medications that have not been in the marketplace for a minimum of two years

Look at the expiration dates of your meds to see if they are still good. If expired, do not throw in the garbage. Give to proper waste disposal service so it does not go back into the environment/water supply.

Before taking any medication, ask your doctor and pharmacist about any side effects and contraindications. Then, read the insert of the medication before taking the product. The same goes for any applicable medical device or surgical procedure.

DIETARY SUPPLEMENTS