Food Safety for People with HIV/AIDS
A need-to-know guide for those who have been diagnosed with HIV/AIDS
• NFSEM 2008 • NFSEM Archives • FoodSafety.gov • FDA/CFSAN • USDA/FSIS • CDC • FightBAC.org |
National Food Safety Education Month® 2008Food Safety for People with HIV/AIDSA need-to-know guide for those who have been diagnosed with HIV/AIDS (This document also available in PDF (1.39MB)) Food safety is important for everyone — but it's especially important for you. That's why the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Food Safety and Inspection Service has prepared this booklet. It's designed to provide practical guidance on how to reduce your risk of foodborne illness. In addition to this practical guidance, we encourage you to check with your physician or health care provider to identify foods and other products that you should avoid. You have a special need for this important information . . . so read on! Contents
Food Safety:
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Campylobacter jejuni | Associated Foods
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Symptoms and Potential Impact
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Cryptosporidium | Associated Foods/Sources
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Symptoms and Potential Impact
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Escherichia coli O157:H7 One of several strains of E. coli that can cause human illness. |
Associated Foods/Sources
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Symptoms and Potential Impact
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Listeria monocytogenes Can grow slowly at refrigerator temperatures |
Associated Foods
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Symptoms and Potential Impact
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Noroviruses (and other calciviruses) | Associated Foods
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Symptoms and Potential Impact
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Salmonella (over 2,300 types) |
Associated Foods
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Symptoms and Potential Impact
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Toxoplasma gondii | Associated Foods/Sources
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Symptoms and Potential Impact
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Vibrio Vulnificus | Associated Foods
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Symptoms and Potential Impact
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Some foods are more risky for you than others. In general, the foods that are most likely to contain pathogens fall into two categories:
Interestingly, the risk these foods may actually pose depends on its origin or source and how it is processed, stored, and prepared. Follow these guidelines (see chart on page 8) for safe selection and preparation of your favorite foods.
If You Have Questions ...
... about Wise Food Choices:
Be sure to consult with your doctor or health care provider. He or she can answer any specific questions or help you in your choices.
... about Particular Foods:
If you aren't sure about the safety of a food in your refrigerator, don't take the risk. When in doubt, throw it out!
Wise choices in your food selections are important.
All consumers need to follow the Four Basic Steps to Food Safety: Clean, Separate, Cook, and Chill.
Type of Food | Higher Risk | Lower Risk |
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Meat and Poultry |
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Tip: Use a food thermometer to check the internal temperature. See "Is It Done Yet?" chart for specific safe minimum internal temperatures. |
Seafood |
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Milk |
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Eggs | Foods that contain raw or undercooked eggs, such as:
*Tip: Most pre-made foods from grocery stores, such as Caesar dressing, pre-made cookie dough, or packaged eggnog are made with pasteurized eggs. |
At home:
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Sprouts |
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Vegetables |
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Cheese | Soft cheeses made from unpasteurized milk, such as:
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Hot Dogs and Deli Meats |
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Tip: You need to reheat hotdogs, deli meats, and luncheon meats before eating them because the bacteria Listeria monocytogenes grows at refrigerated temperatures. This bacteria may cause severe illness, hospitalization, or even death. Reheating these foods destroys this dangerous bacteria, making these foods safe for you to eat. |
Pâtés |
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Foodborne pathogens are sneaky. You can't tell by looking, smelling, or even tasting a food whether it contains pathogens. But these pathogens — like disease-causing bacteria, viruses, or parasites — can make you sick.
As a person with HIV/AIDS, it is especially important for you — or those preparing your food — to be careful with food handling and preparation. The easiest way to do this is to follow the Four Basic Steps to Food Safety — clean, separate, cook and chill — from the Fight BAC!® Campaign, the national campaign developed and promoted by the Partnership for Food Safety Education.
Bacteria can spread throughout the kitchen and get onto cutting boards, utensils, counter tops, and food.
To ensure that your hands and surfaces are clean, be sure to:
Cross-contamination occurs when bacteria are spread from one food product to another. This is especially common when handling raw meat, poultry, seafood, and eggs. The key is to keep these foods — and their juices — away from ready-to-eat foods.
To prevent cross-contamination, remember to:
Foods are safely cooked when they are heated to the USDA-recommended safe minimum internal temperatures, as shown on the "Is It Done Yet?" chart (see below).
To ensure that your foods are cooked safely, always:
Cold temperatures slow the growth of harmful bacteria. Keeping a constant refrigerator temperature of 40 °F or below is one of the most effective ways to reduce risk of foodborne illness. Use an appliance thermometer to be sure the refrigerator temperature is consistently 40 °F or below and the freezer temperature is 0 °F or below.
To chill foods properly:
You can't tell by looking. Use a food thermometer to be sure.
Steaks & Roasts 145 °F |
Fish 145 °F |
Pork 160 °F |
Ground Beef 160 °F |
Egg Dishes 160 °F |
Chicken Breasts 165 °F |
Whole Poultry 165 °F |
These time limit guidelines will help keep refrigerated food safe to eat. Because freezing keeps food safe indefinitely, recommended storage times are for quality only. | |||
Product | Refrigerator (40 °F) | Freezer (0 °F) | |
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Eggs | Fresh, in shell | 3 to 5 weeks | Don't freeze |
Hard cooked | 1 week | Don't freeze well | |
Liquid Pasteurized Eggs, Egg Substitutes | Opened | 3 days | Don't freeze well |
Unopened | 10 days | 1 year | |
Deli or Vacuum-Packed Products | Egg, chicken, ham, tuna, & macaroni salads | 3 to 5 days | Don't freeze well |
Hot Dogs | Opened package | 1 week | 1 to 2 months |
Unopened package | 2 weeks | 1 to 2 months | |
Luncheon Meat | Opened package | 3 to 5 days | 1 to 2 months |
Unopened package | 2 weeks | 1 to 2 months | |
Bacon & Sausage | Bacon | 7 days | 1 month |
Sausage, raw — from chicken, turkey, pork, beef | 1 to 2 days | 1 to 2 months | |
Hamburger and Other Ground Meats | Hamburger, ground beef, turkey, veal, pork, lamb, & mixtures of them | 1 to 2 days | 3 to 4 months |
Fresh Beef, Veal, Lamb, Pork | Steaks | 3 to 5 days | 6 to 12 months |
Chops | 3 to 5 days | 4 to 6 months | |
Roasts | 3 to 5 days | 4 to 12 months | |
Fresh Poultry | Chicken or turkey, whole | 1 to 2 days | 1 year |
Chicken or turkey, pieces | 1 to 2 days | 9 months | |
Seafood | Lean fish (flounder, haddock, halibut, etc.) | 1 to 2 days | 6 to 8 months |
Fatty fish (salmon, tuna, etc.) | 1 to 2 days | 2 to 3 months | |
Leftovers | Cooked meat or poultry | 3 to 4 days | 2 to 6 months |
Chicken nuggets, patties | 1 to 2 days | 1 to 3 months | |
Pizza | 3 to 4 days | 1 to 2 months |
Follow these safe food-handling practices while you shop.
When shopping for food, reading the label carefully is key.
Eating out can be lots of fun — so make it an enjoyable experience by following some simple guidelines to avoid foodborne illness. Remember to observe your food when it is served, and don't ever hesitate to ask questions before you order. Waiters and waitresses can be quite helpful if you ask how a food is prepared. Also, let them know you don't want any food item containing raw meat, poultry, fish, or eggs.
Basic Rules for Ordering
If in doubt, make another selection!
Choose: | Avoid: |
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Hard or processed cheeses, or soft cheeses only if made from pasteurized milk. | Cheese made from unpasteurized milk. |
Fully cooked smoked fish or seafood. | Raw or undercooked seafood. |
Hot dogs reheated to steaming hot. If the hot dogs are served cold or lukewarm, ask to have them reheated until steaming, or else choose something else. | Cold hot dogs. |
Grilled sandwiches in which the meat or poultry is heated until steaming. | Sandwiches with cold deli or luncheon meat. |
Fully cooked fish that is firm and flaky. | Raw or undercooked fish, such as sushi or sashimi. |
Fully cooked eggs with firm yolk and whites. | Soft-boiled or "over-easy"eggs, as the yolks are not fully cooked. |
Ask questions about how your food is cooked.
Stay "Food Safe" When Traveling Internationally
Discuss your travel plans with your physician before traveling to other countries. Your physician may have specific recommendations for the places you are visiting, and may suggest extra precautions or medications to take on your travels.
For more information about safe food and water while traveling abroad, access the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Web site at www.cdc.gov/travel.
Select your foods with care when traveling to other countries.
Despite your best efforts, you may find yourself in a situation where you suspect you have a foodborne illness. Foodborne illness often presents itself with flu-like symptoms.
These symptoms include:
If you suspect that you could have a foodborne illness, there are four key steps that you should take. Follow the guidelines in the Foodborne Illness Action Plan on page 19, which begins with contacting your physician or health care provider right away.
When in doubt — contact your physician or health care provider!
My Physicians: Quick reference List
Name:________________________
Phone: _______________________ Specialty: _________________________
Name:________________________
Phone: _______________________ Specialty: _________________________
Name:________________________
Phone: _______________________ Specialty: _________________________
You may contact the USDA Food Safety and Inspection Service to obtain additional food safety information in both English and Spanish.
Information can also be accessed on the FSIS Web site at www.fsis.usda.gov.
Call the USDA Meat and Poultry Hotline at 1-888-MPHotline (1-888-674-6854) or TTY: 1-800-256-7072.
_______________________________________________________________________
State Department of Agriculture: __________________________________________
Health Department: _____________________________________________________
Other: _________________________________________________________________
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Clip out handy Info Cards and carry them for quick reference when shopping, cooking, and eating out!
Thank you to Lydia Medeiros, Ph.D., R.D., Patricia A. Kendall, Ph.D., R.D., and Val Hillers, Ph.D., R.D., for their assistance and groundbreaking research to the at-risk community.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) prohibits discrimination in all its programs and activities on the basis of race, color, national origin, age, disability, and where applicable, sex, marital status, familial status, parental status, religion, sexual orientation, genetic information, political beliefs, reprisal, or because all or part of an individual's income is derived from any public assistance program. (Not all prohibited bases apply to all programs.) Persons with disabilities who require alternative means for communication of program information (Braille, large print, audiotape, etc.) should contact USDA's TARGET Center at (202) 720-2600 (voice and TDD). To file a complaint of discrimination, write to USDA, Director, Office of Civil Rights, 1400 Independence Avenue, S.W., Washington, D.C. 20250-9410, or call (800) 795-3272 (voice) or (202) 720-6382 (TDD). USDA is an equal opportunity provider and employer.
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