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What's a Senior to Eat?
Nutritionists agree that a healthful diet includes a variety of foods.
Food choices also can help reduce the risk for chronic diseases, such
as heart disease, cancers, diabetes, stroke, and osteoporosis, that
are the leading cause of death and disability among Americans.
But for seniors, certain foods may pose a significant health hazard
because of the level of bacteria present in the product's raw or
uncooked state.
Seniors should avoid these products:
- Raw fin fish and
shellfish, including oysters, clams, mussels, and scallops.
- Raw or unpasteurized milk or cheese.
- Soft cheeses such as feta, Brie, Camembert, blue-veined, and
Mexican-style cheese. (Hard cheeses, processed cheeses, cream cheese,
cottage cheese, or yogurt need not be avoided.)
- Raw or lightly cooked egg or egg products including salad dressings,
cookie or cake batter, sauces, and beverages such as egg nog.
- Raw meat or poultry.
- Raw alfalfa sprouts which have only recently emerged as a recognized
source of foodborne illness.
- Unpasteurized or untreated fruit or vegetable juice. When fruits
and vegetables are made into fresh-squeezed juice, harmful bacteria that
may be present can become part of the finished product. Most juice in
the United States, 98 percent, is pasteurized or otherwise treated to kill harmful bacteria.
To help consumers identify unpasteurized or untreated juices, the Food and Drug
Administration is
requiring a warning label on these products. The label says:
WARNING:
This product has not been pasteurized and therefore may
contain harmful bacteria that can cause serious illness in
children, the elderly, and persons with weakened immune
systems.
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Next: To Market, To Market
Additional information on
Juice Safety,
Sprouts,
Symptoms of Foodborne Illness,
and
What to Do In Case of Foodborne Illness
New information on food safety is constantly emerging. Recommendations
and precautions are updated as scientists learn more about preventing
foodborne illness. You need to be aware of and follow the most current
information on food safety. Visit
http://vm.cfsan.fda.gov/~mow/foodborn.html for more recent
information on foodborne illness.
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