Can you pass some bacteria with the turkey?

Besides the insane amount of calories in a typical Thanksgiving meal, the next most alarming thing about this holiday is the increased risk to contracting foodborne illness. Food is rushed out of the oven, left out for hours at a time, and usually kept as leftovers way too long.

Here are a few highlights I learned from the CDC's Fight Bac website:
-Keep your hot food above 140° F or you could end up with Staphylococcal or Perfringens food poisoning. Eating food that has been left out at room temperature too long can lead to cramps, diarrhea, nausea, and vomiting.
-How does bloody diarrhea sound during your Thanksgiving weekend? If meats are not cooked to their appropriate temperature, you could end up with E-coli O157:H7. Invest in a meat thermometer! Poultry should be cooked to an internal temperature of at least 165° F.
-Salmonellosis and Campylobacteriosis (which is one of the longer-lasting foodborne illnesses) can both easily be prevented by using precaution while handling raw meat and poultry.

Follow the CDC's four easy steps and you will not let lazy food handling ruin your holiday..
-Clean your hands and surfaces.
-Separate food so as not to cross-contaminate
-Cook foods (especially meat and poultry) to their proper temperature
-Chill food promptly

Check out this website to learn how to purchase and cook your holiday food safely: http://www.holidayfoodsafety.org/