Tomatoes! Fried foods?

Salmonella and Tomatoes
Remember, highly pathogenic bird flu (HPAI) is not in the US right now, but you could get a lot of other diseases at a restaurant. Some of the tops on the list are salmonella, norovirus and E.coli just to mention a few.

So, when you are in a restaurant, how do you know which foods you should order to wake up the next morning in one piece? Here are a few tips that will keep you from getting food borne illnesses at a restaurant, roadside food stall, or fairgrounds food tent.

Do's and Do Not's of Eating Out

• Do eat foods that are served very hot.
• Do order fried foods recently plucked out of the grease. If you are traveling and must eat from a food stall, have your food cooked in front of your eyes and do not allow the vendor to lay bare hands on your food. If possible, get your food plucked out of the grease with a pair of tongs that have had a good dunk in that boiling grease.
• Do ask for drinks directly out of the can or bottle and open them yourself. Use a straw that comes in an unopened wrapper.
• Do skip the ice.
• Do wash your hands properly before and after eating. On the road, carry a bottle of an alcohol hand cleanser.
• Do not order fresh fruit juices.
• Do not drink out of glasses or eat from plates that appear damp from recent washing.
• Do not eat salads or fresh fruits.
• Do not eat meat that is pink.
• Do not eat raw animal blood.
• Do not eat undercooked eggs, no runny yolks.
• Do not eat any cold foods, especially if they should be hot.

Aren't Fresh Fruits and Vegetables Good for Me?

Of course, but fresh fruits and vegetables may have been sprayed, washed or irrigated with contaminated water containing fecal material, human or animal. Salads are ripe for disease at a restaurant. You cannot always be sure the restaurant properly washes and handles fresh produce.

And What's Wrong With Ice?

Tap water is often used to make ice and this could be contaminated. Ice may also be picked up by hand by the waiter or waitress, increasing the risk of transmission of a food borne illness.

And From Where is the Fried Foods Tip?

New Orleans, of course. The elevated cooking temperature of deep-fat fried foods kills food borne germs. A professor at the Tulane School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine would never eat at a restaurant in New Orleans or anywhere. He missed out on a lot of jambalaya and you could not pay him to eat raw oysters.

When this professor was asked to go to a banquet or awards dinner with other faculty members about twice a year, he would try everything to get out of going. When he was forced to go, he limited himself to ordering anything that was fried, which, fortunately for him, is not very difficult to manage in New Orleans.

from about.com filed prevention of disease