Five Minutes or Less for Health Weekly Tip: Keep Foods Safe
To help protect yourself and others from foodborne illness, take a few minutes to ensure foods are safe.
- Refrigerate leftovers promptly. Illness-producing bacteria can grow quickly at room temperature, so refrigerate foods that tend to spoil faster (like fruits and vegetables, milk, eggs, and meats) within two hours. When in doubt, throw it out.
- Wash hands, utensils, surfaces, and cutting boards after they have been in contact with raw meat or poultry and before they touch another food.
- Wash produce before you eat it.
- Take a few extra minutes to make sure meat, poultry, and eggs are cooked thoroughly.
- Report suspected foodborne illnesses to your local health department.
- Check CDC's food safety website and foodsafety.gov, your gateways to federal food safety information.
Learn More
Healthy Youth in Schools: Food Allergies
Healthy Youth in Schools: Food Safety
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Content Source: CDC Office
of Women’s Health
Page last modified: October 30, 2012
Page last reviewed: October 30, 2012
Page last modified: October 30, 2012
Page last reviewed: October 30, 2012