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salad dressings, poultry dressing, bread puddings, cream
pies, eclairs, and filled pastries.
These microorganisms are transmitted to the food
by personnel who are sick or carriers and who are
allowed to handle food in the food preparation area.
Salmonellosis
Salmonella bacteria are transmitted by foods,
usually from undercooked or semicooked raw foods, or
from foods that have become infected after cooking by
persons who are harboring the bacteria. Since
salmonella bacilli leave the body through the intestinal
tract, the main source of salmonella infection is people
who do not wash their hands after leaving the head.
Consequently, they contaminate all the food they
handle.
Also, mice, rats, and cockroaches may
contaminate food by dragging filth over food and food
utensils, or by intestinal deposits that are brushed off
into food or containers.
While no specific foods may be said to be
responsible for salmonellosis, the ones most likely to
harbor the salmonella bacilli are (1) those that are
usually eaten raw such as salads and greens; (2) cooked
leftover foods that are not reheated thoroughly; (3) foods
that are undercooked, especially poultry and
uninspected meats; and (4) infected eggs that are eaten
raw or undercooked.
See “Safe Egg-Handling
Guidelines” in chapter 1 of NAVMED P-5010.
Streptococcus
Infections such as septic sore throat and scarlet fever
are transmitted by contaminated milk and by certain
other foods, including meat, meat products, and
dressings. One type of this infection also causes a
gastrointestinal disturbance. Floor dust is one of the
modes of transmission.
Typhoid Fever
Typhoid fever is transmitted by milk, shellfish, or
water supplies that have become polluted with the urine
or feces of a person harboring the organism of this
disease. It is also spread by human carriers and flies that
transport the typhoid bacteria from soiled articles to
foods, dishes, and cooking utensils.
Bacillus Dysentery
Bacillus dysentery is transmitted by contaminated
foods or water, by human carriers, or by flies. The
bacilli of this disease are found in the bowel discharges
of infected persons.
Infectious Hepatitis
Infectious hepatitis is a form of liver disease with
symptoms of general discomfort. Jaundice, often
characterized by skin yellowing, and other signs of liver
injury are sometimes present. The disease is highly
contagious. Drinking water or unsanitary conditions
and flies or other biting insects may transmit the
infectious material.
ANIMAL PARASITES
Animal parasites sometimes enter the body in food
and produce infections. Some of these forms of animal
life are one-celled. All are so tiny that they are not
visible when the food is being prepared.
Amoebic Dysentery
This illness is caused by a one-celled animal, the
amoeba. These organisms eat the red blood corpuscles
of the body and the cells that line the intestines. The
dysentery-producing amoeba is transmitted by foods
served cold and moist, such as celery, lettuce, other fresh
vegetables, or fresh berries. These foods may be
infected by human earners, by flies, or by having been
grown in fields where animal excreta was used as
fertilizer.
Trichinosis
Eating infected pork that has not been thoroughly
cooked is the most common cause of trichinosis. All
fresh pork products must be cooked to an internal
temperature of 165°F or above to kill the trichinella
worm. Since there is no way of knowing whether or not
this parasite is present, the pork must always be
thoroughly cooked.
Beef Tapeworm Infection
Beef tapeworms are transmitted by infected beef
that has not been cooked long enough to kill the encysted
larvae. To prevent ingesting the beef tapeworm, only
government-inspected beef should be used. If it is
necessary to use beef that has not been inspected, freeze
it at 14°F or below for 5 days or longer, or pickle it in a
20- to 25-percent salt solution for 5 days or longer. Cook
it well-done; never serve it rare.
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