How to fight listeriosis every day

The listeriosis outbreak has been a main feature of the news since it broke out last year, but the good news is that as long as you are taking the proper precautions you should be safe.

The Fourways Review recently spoke to a medical doctor of Witkoppen Clinic. The doctor, who asked not to be named as she is not an expert on listeriosis, wants the public to know that there is no need to panic as long as you take the proper precautions. No cases of the disease have been reported at the clinic.

“I don’t think this outbreak should be the cause of panic,” she said. “As long as you are following the basic principles of safe food handling, there’s very little chance of getting sick. There are a few health and hygiene habits you should embrace, but then again you should be doing these things all the time anyway.”

A few ways you can keep yourself and your loved ones safe are:

• Wash your hands well with soap and water, both before you cook food and before you eat it
• Wash your hands after using the toilet
• During food preparation, remember to keep raw food and cooked food separate, as to limit cross-contamination
• Wash all food really well, with clean water, before you cook or eat it
• Make sure your utensils and cooking surfaces are clean before preparing food with them
• Cooking food at a temperature higher than 70 degrees Celsius should kill any harmful organisms. The same can be said for reheating food
• Cooked food should be stored in the fridge with a temperature of five degrees Celsius or colder, and not kept for extended periods of time
• Even in the fridge, keep raw and cooked food in separate containers to avoid cross-contamination.

“All these principles are relevant to any food-borne disease, not just listeriosis, and should be practised regularly. With any illness, the most at risk people are the very young, the elderly, pregnant women and those who are already immo-compromised,” the doctor added.

“You know your own body, so seek out medical assistance if and when you think you need it.”

Meanwhile, the national response to the outbreak has been swift. Spar and Pick n Pay have publicly committed to removing affected products from their shelves as quickly as possible.

“All Enterprise products [including Bokkie, Renown, Lifestyle and Mieliekip brands] have already been recalled by the company concerned and we are urgently withdrawing them from our stores,” read a statement published on the Pick n Pay website.

“In addition, as a precaution, Pick n Pay-branded chicken polony, manufactured by Rainbow, is also being withdrawn. All fridges and food preparation areas in our stores will now be re-cleaned to prevent any cross-contamination. Recalled meat is being isolated and will be safely destroyed.”

The Department of Basic Education also released a statement to allay concerns that produce used in the National School Nutrition Programme was not harmful to children.

“The [department] would like to reassure parents, learners and members of the public that there are no processed meat products used as part of the National School Nutrition Programme,” read the statement.

“The food served to over nine million learners daily as part of the [programme] is safe and excludes these types of meat products. However, we would like parents and the greater school community to remain vigilant.”

To read more about listeriosis, here are some reliable websites to visit:

• The National Institute for Communicable Diseases
• The National Department of Health
• The World Health Organisation