The Ten Most Risky Foods to Eat

I recently wrote a Hub about dog food and about the disgusting, rancid ingredients allowable by U.S. law. I don’t usually eat dog food, but after studying some of the recent material published about “human” food, I’m considering it.

Most of us think we're pretty savvy when it comes to safe food preparation and recognizing when products look unsafe to eat. If the meat we're about to turn into a delicious pot roast smells beyond dead, chances are we’d throw it away. If we notice that the lid on a can of tomatoes was bulging – looking very likely to burst, we’d chuck that out too. Most of us know the wise old saying, “When in doubt, throw it out”.

Our eyes and nose are our first line of defense against eating food that will make us sick, but what about those unseen, un-smelt indicators we know nothing about?

We just have to rely on the warnings provided by the FDA and consumer advocate groups OR we have to just chill out and eat it anyway.

The government regularly issues recalls on products that have caused harm to individuals. If you really want to get ahead of the game you can bookmark the FDA’s food recall site where you’ll find a whole list of dodgy products that will add to your already growing “fear factor”.

Here's the link for

Recalls, Market Withdrawals, & Safety Alerts

Really dangerous foods do gain instant media attention, but some of the more benignly offensive foods are those that have been recalled for undisclosed ingredients.

For Example:

In November 2009 Vita Herring in Sour Cream (one of my particular favorites) was recalled for “undeclared” wheat, meaning there’s a small amount of wheat in the product, but not on the label. People with wheat allergies could have an unpleasant reaction to grandma’s nice herring appetizer. Most of us wouldn’t notice a thing.

The list also includes pet foods that are lacking important ingredients. For example, Diamond Premium Edge Hairball Cat Food lacked the vital ingredient “thiamine”, necessary for your cat’s health. Personally, I wouldn’t feed my cat hairballs anyway.

But getting to the meat (or should I say the fruit and veg) of the story, I recently came across a disturbing article about some of the most unlikely foods on the danger list; - foods which did make me consider a diet of only bread, nuts and vitamins.

Sorry, no Amazon links for the above-mentioned items -  I do have some integrity.

In a report from our friends at the FDA and the CSPI – Center for Science in the Public Interest, (a Food Safety Advocate organization), it was confirmed that illness-causing substances may now be present in fruits and vegetables. I’m talking about those “must-eat components” of a balanced, healthy diet. If we take dairy products, meat, tuna, shellfish, fruits, and vegetables away from our diets, it seems to me that there’s very little left to eat.

Here are U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s “TOP TEN RISKIEST FOODS”

50,000 illnesses were reported from the following ten foods, ranging from temporary gastrointestinal distress to long-term disability and even death. The report analyzed food-related illnesses linked to FDA-regulated products between 1990 and 2006. Here we are four year later. If you haven’t gotten sick yet, you’re doing something right.

Berries include all those luscious looking strawberries, raspberries, blackberries. We’re not only talking fresh berries; frozen berries are also included. There have been more than 3300 illnesses since 1990 due to the presence of Hepatitis A, and a parasite called Cyclospora.

There have been 31 confirmed outbreaks involving 2022 reported cases of illness in the U.S. since the 1990s. Sprout seeds may become contaminated since sprout seeds require humid conditions grow sprouts. It’s a double-edged sword for the poor sprout, because humid conditions are also ideal for the rapid growth of bacteria. Many strains of Salmonella have been implicated in sprout outbreaks, as has E. coli.

I had a good friend who always warned me of these dangers every time I ate sprouts. (I ate them anyway, being somewhat food fearless). I’m sure she would be horrified to learn that far more popular salad ingredients are also on the FDA’s risk list. Look out below.

There have been 31 confirmed outbreaks involving 3292 reported cases of illness.

2005 and 2006 were bad years for tomato lovers.

Salmonella accounted for over half of the reported outbreaks. It seems that the clever Salmonella can enter tomato plants through the roots, flowers and through small cracks in the skin of the fruit. (yes tomatoes are actually a fruit). Norovirus was the second most common hazard.

Garden based infestation accounted for only 30 percent of the spoilage. 70 percent of the illnesses associated with tomatoes were due to Salmonella and Norovirus that made it into your salad from some restaurant workers’ hands or their unclean preparation surfaces.

As sad as this may seem, frozen treats have caused nearly 75 outbreaks from hazards like Salmonella and Staphylcoccus since 1990.

There’s also a particularly hardy bacterium, Listeria can survive on metal surfaces—such as the interior of soft ice cream machines. That means batch after batch of delicious Blizzards, freezes and other “soft-serve” treats are open to the contaminate.

Here’s some heartening news, however:

Almost half of all ice-cream outbreaks occurred in private homes. This is most likely due to the use of undercooked eggs in homemade ice cream. I’m off to Dairy Queen.

There have been 83 confirmed outbreaks involving 2761 reported cases of illness.

Thousands of consumers were sickened since 1990. Salmonella was the most common hazard among cheese products. Cheese is tricky because it gets curdled, molded, salted and processed which opens up more possibilities for contamination.

Most cheeses are now made with pasteurized milk and this does lower the risk of contamination. Of course, true cheese lovers believe this also compromises the nature of many cheeses. After all, soft cheeses such as Feta, Brie, Camembert, and blue-veined cheese and many other deliciously stinky cheese must contain certain benign bacteria that is pretty much destroyed by pasteurization.

August 2009, California officials warned consumers about eating Latin American-style cheeses (such as queso fresco, queso oaxaca, and others), which may be made by unlicensed manufacturers using unpasteurized milk that could contain harmful bacteria such as Listeria. (that persistent culprit).

I find it curious; however, that outbreaks from cheese products occurred most frequently in private homes.

It’s almost un-American to think that this versatile favorite is now being called the "sickening spud".

Most lethal in the form of potato salad, more than 3600 consumers reported to have been sickened by spuds since 1990. Personally I think it was the mayo gone bad rather than the spud, but that’s just my opinion.

Normally found in animal feces, the presence of E. coli in potato dishes could indicate cross contamination possibly from raw meat or poultry during handling and preparation. Salmonella, Shigella and Listeria , (an unsavory mouthful of avengers) also appeared in outbreaks associated with potatoes.

There have been 132 confirmed outbreaks involving 3409 reported cases of illness oysters.

The majority of outbreaks from tainted oysters occurred in restaurants, but that’s because not too many of us prepare them at home. Norovirus and Vibrio are the culprits when it comes to these succulent creatures. Most contamination occurs from the improper handling during harvest or preparation; however, oysters can actually be harvested from waters contaminated with Norovirus.

Proper cooking of oysters destroys these contaminants, so go for the Oysters Rockefeller which is a fab broiled dish made with spinach and hollandaise sauce.

There have been 268 confirmed outbreaks involving 2341 reported cases of illness.

Tuna was linked to 268 outbreaks in the FDA Top Ten.

Some consumers may be familiar with methyl mercury warnings about tuna, but the bacteria and other pathogens that show up in the outbreak data are rarely discussed when it comes to this fish.

Fresh fish start to decay quickly after being caught and if they're stored above 60° F, begin to release natural toxins like scombrotoxin . Adequate refrigeration and handling can slow down the spoilage, but cooking, freezing, smoking, curing, or canning cannot destroy the toxin.

I do not know why other fish are not cited, unless it is only Tuna that is improperly stored after being caught.

There have been 352 confirmed outbreaks involving 11,163 reported cases of illness.

Eggs are among the worst of the FDA Top Ten and the overwhelming majority of illnesses from eggs are associated with Salmonella. One way we become infected is when the bacteria travels via feces, from the intestinal tracts of animals and birds to humans.

Salmonella enteritidis: however, the most prevalent type of Salmonella in eggs today, infects the ovaries of hens and contaminates the eggs before the shells are formed. Also, serving eggs raw or “runny,” or leaving egg dishes at improper holding temperatures (such as on a breakfast buffet) permits bacteria to multiply. It’s interesting to note that the largest outbreaks occurred in prisons.

My advice is to cook your eggs and stay out of prison.

There have been 363 confirmed outbreaks involving 13,568 reported cases of illness.

They include: greens—iceberg lettuce, romaine lettuce, leaf lettuce, butter lettuce, baby leaf lettuce (immature lettuce or leafy greens), escarole, endive, spring mix, spinach, cabbage, kale, arugula or chard - and let us not forget – bagged spinach.

All those lovely lettuces can become contaminated even before they leave the farm. Wild animals, manure, contaminated water, or poor handling practices have been known to occur during harvest. This can happen on any farm, including your friendly local grower’s organic farm.

Contamination can also occur during processing when employees fail to wash their hands or there is cross-contamination of cutting boards and other equipment.

In addition, chlorine washes and other treatments may be performed at food plants to reduce cross contamination, but they don’t make contaminated products truly safe to eat. Lurking bacteria the washing systems of “pre-washed” bagged lettuce transfers dangerous bacteria from one contaminated lot to the next. So you may want to re-wash those oh so convenient “pre-washed” products.

I don’t get intimidated too easily, so I’m continuing to eat everything on the high-risk list. I also enjoy eating in fine restaurants and I’m not going to stop just because there’s a chance I might get sick. My own odds have been pretty good so far, and I usually keep pretty positive. You’ll have to weigh your own odds accordingly.

I do; however, believe that food safety is an issue of tremendous importance and I’m all for stricter inspections, microbial testing and in general bolstering and improving an understaffed, under-funded FDA.

Which brings me to my final topic of importance.

Although recently passed by the House and The Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee in November of 2009, the full US Senate has yet to pass The FDA Food Safety Modernization act (S.510).

In a nutshell (no pun untended), the Bill will implement stronger legislation, giving the FDA “new authorities to manage food safety from farm to table, through improved standards and more frequent inspections.”

Even if the Bill does pass, and it most probably will - the only thing the U.S. consumer needs to look out for is Special Interest Groups that will certainly take measures to counteract the effectiveness of the Bill. They have already begun.

Special Interest Groups are already lobbying against the proposed Food Safety Modification act. Members very often dominate industry “inspection systems” with financial ties to that industry. The food, tobacco and pharmaceutical industries are prime examples.

Check out these Links -

Public Health Loses Out to Politics in Oyster Decision

The Integrity in Science Data Base of the CSPI

As the battle for consumer safety continues, I applaud the ongoing efforts of the CSPI and other consumer advocate groups who strive to combat corporate influence on science and science-based projects.

We as consumers need to be vigilant - reporting any food related illness to the public health department and to our doctors.

We will also have to tighten our belts. Expect higher food prices as farmers, fisherman, and other providers adapt new measures; - but that’s the price of negligence.

What we can look forward to is the hope that lists such as “The Ten Riskiest Foods” will disappear and the U.S. will begin to show some integrity for the welfare of it’s consumers.

Health and Peace to You All

© Copyright Green Lotus, 2011. All rights reserved.

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