Summer food safety: the rules that protect the whole family

According to the World Health Organization, one in ten people worldwide falls ill from food every year. In summer the risk jumps, because heat speeds up bacterial growth while we eat outdoors: on the beach, at a picnic and on the road.

The good news is that most cases are prevented with a few simple rules. They are the same ones that WHO, CDC and food regulators teach professional kitchens around the world, only applied here to your everyday life.

The bacteria behind food poisoning multiply fastest between 4 and 60 degrees Celsius. That is why this range is called the danger zone. Cold food should stay below 4 degrees and hot food above 60 until it is served.

Your home fridge should hold no more than 4 degrees: check it with an inexpensive fridge thermometer, because in summer compressors often fail to compensate for the heat, especially when the door is opened frequently.

This is the most important summer rule: perishable food does not stay out for more than 2 hours. When the temperature is above 32 degrees, and at the beach it almost always is, the time shrinks to 1 hour. After that the food is thrown away, even if it looks and smells normal.

The rule also applies to dinner leftovers on the terrace. Put them in the fridge on time, spread in shallow containers so they cool quickly, and eat them within 3-4 days. Meat is never thawed on the counter, only in the fridge, in cold water or in the microwave.

A cooler bag is not a luxury but a must: ice or frozen water bottles keep food below 4 degrees. Raw meat is packed at the very bottom in a sealed container so it cannot drip onto ready-to-eat food, and ideally travels in a separate bag.

Fruit and vegetables are washed under running water at home before leaving, not in the sea at the beach. Drink only bottled or proven safe water and watch the ice cubes from beach bars: they are one of the common causes of problems.

Separate boards, tongs and plates for raw and cooked meat: this is the rule most often broken at home. Cooked meat never goes back onto the plate that held it raw, unless that plate has been washed with hot water and soap.

The colour of meat is not a reliable sign of doneness. A kitchen thermometer is the only sure way: poultry to 74 degrees in the thickest part, minced meat and burgers to 71, steaks and fish to 63, with the steaks then needing to rest for 3 minutes before serving.

Mayonnaise has a bad reputation, but it is rarely the culprit itself. More often the problem is the boiled eggs, chicken or potatoes in the salad that spent hours in the heat. Still, every mayonnaise or dairy dressing speeds up spoiling, so such salads stay in the fridge until the moment of serving.

The same goes for ready-made food from beach stalls and bars: if a sandwich or salad has been sitting in a display without cooling, do not buy it. Food from summer stalls is one of the most common sources of poisoning during the holidays.

The rule of food regulators is unambiguous: when in doubt, throw it out. Smell and taste are not reliable tests, because many dangerous bacteria and toxins change neither, and trying a spoonful only adds risk.

We throw away any food that has spent more than 2 hours in the heat, anything with a changed smell, colour or texture, and everything past its expiry date. The saved dinner is not worth three days of diarrhoea.

Most food poisoning passes on its own within a few days, and the most important treatment is replacing water and electrolytes: sip water often in small amounts, and with diarrhoea and vomiting add an oral rehydration sachet from the pharmacy. It is also an essential part of the summer travel medicine kit.

Eat when you feel like it, lightly and without fatty or spicy food, and skip fruit juices and fizzy drinks: they worsen diarrhoea. Anti-diarrhoea medicines such as loperamide are for adults only, are not given to children under 12, and are not taken with blood in the stool or high fever.

Medical help is sought immediately at signs of dehydration (rare and dark urination, dry mouth, dizziness), blood in the stool or vomit, vomiting for more than 2 days or diarrhoea for more than 7 days, as well as high fever that does not come down.

With a baby under 12 months, a small child, a pregnant woman, an older person or someone chronically ill, do not wait: call a doctor at the first symptoms. In a severe condition with confusion, fainting or inability to keep down even sips of water, call 112.

The information in this article has been verified and is based on: the World Health Organization's five keys to safer food, CDC's four steps to food safety (clean, separate, cook, chill), the FDA and USDA guidance on outdoor food and the two-hour rule, and the NHS page on food poisoning and home care.