December 19, 1995

HOLIDAY FOOD PREPARATION ADVISORY

SPRINGFIELD, IL -- Don't let salmonella poisoning spoil your holiday season.

"Many holiday treats are made with raw or partially cooked eggs and, therefore, have the potential to cause a type of illness known as salmonella enteritidis," said Dr. John R. Lumpkin, state public health director. "To protect you, your family and guests, pasteurized eggs should be substituted for eggs when preparing traditional holiday servings like eggnog and bread pudding."

Popular foods that often contain raw or partially cooked eggs include homemade eggnog, bread pudding, meringue topped pies, custard, Hollandaise sauce and homemade ice cream.

These products, when commercially produced, are safe to serve since they are made with eggs that are pasteurized, a process that kills salmonella bacteria.

Salmonella illness most commonly occurs when foods--including eggs, raw meats, fish and shellfish, and poultry-- are not fully cooked. Salmonella enteritidis is a type of salmonella linked to raw and partially cooked eggs.

To reduce the risk of salmonella enteritidis and spoilage, the following precautions are recommended when buying and storing eggs:

• Ensure thorough cooking or substitute pasteurized eggs in recipes that call for raw eggs.
• Use grade AA or A eggs with clean, uncracked shells.
• Store eggs in the refrigerator, at a temperature no higher than 40 degrees Fahrenheit, and in their original cartoon. Eggs are washed as part of commercial egg processing and do not need to be washed again before use.
• Use raw eggs within five weeks and hard-cooked eggs, whether in the shell or peeled, within one week. Leftover yolks and whites should be used within four days.
• Avoid keeping eggs out of the refrigerator for more than two hours at a time.
• Wash hands, utensils, equipment and work areas with hot, soapy water before and after contact with eggs or foods with eggs.
• Serve cooked eggs and egg-rich foods immediately after cooking, or refrigerate at once for serving later. Use leftovers within three to four days.
• When refrigerating a large amount of a hot egg-rich dish or leftover, divide it into several shallow containers so it will cool quickly.

Salmonella symptoms, which can last from 24 hours to 12 days, include headache, muscle aches, diarrhea, vomiting, rumblings in the bowels, chills, fever, nausea and dehydration, usually appear six to 72 hours after ingestion.

Children younger than 1 year old, people who have had ulcer surgery or who take antacids and those whose immune systems are weakened by other ailments are most susceptible.

So far in 1995, 1,932 cases of salmonella poisoning have been reported in Illinois, including 360 cases of salmonella enteritidis. Cases reported in past years have included, in 1994, 1,821 salmonella, 413 salmonella enteritidis; in 1993, 2,232 salmonella, 647 salmonella enteritidis; in 1992, 1,711 salmonella, 364 salmonella enteritidis; and in 1991, 2,368 salmonella, 362 salmonella enteritidis.

Illinois Department of Public Health 535 West Jefferson Street Springfield, Illinois 62761 Phone 217-782-4977 Fax 217-782-3987 TTY 800-547-0466 Questions or Comments