Eating food beyond its ‘use by’ date increases the risk
of food poisoning from listeria.
A recent sharp rise in the number of people taken ill with
listeria has seen more people over 60 affected by the
potentially deadly food bug.
The
Food Standards Agency (FSA) is
tackling the rise in listeria food poisoning amongst older people
by launching a new campaign to warn about the dangers of listeria
and the simple steps that can be taken to avoid it.
Dr Andrew Wadge, Chief Scientist at the
FSA, said:
“The rise in listeria food poisoning amongst older people is
worrying. Listeria can make people very ill and 95 percent of cases
end up with treatment in hospital.
“There are some really simple steps people can take to prevent
getting ill in the first place:
- be aware that ‘use by’ dates indicate how long food will remain
safe, and then make sure you stick to them
- always follow the storage instruction on the label
- make sure your fridge is cold enough – between 0C and 5C is
ideal.
“These are the three messages that our new campaign is focusing
on. Cases of food poisoning double in frequency during the summer
months but it is very easy to avoid becoming one of those who fall
ill by sticking to these simple steps.”
The number of cases of listeria food poisoning rose by 20
percent in 2007 and has doubled since 2000, this increase has
occurred mainly amongst people over 60. New research shows less
than half of this age group recognise ‘use by’ dates as an
important indicator of whether food is safe or not, and so could be
putting themselves at risk of serious illness.
The research findings include the following:
- Less than half (42 percent) of older people
questioned in the survey correctly identified the ‘use by’ date as
an important indicator of whether a food is safe. This is much
lower than people in younger age groups 51 percent of 25-44
year olds and 53 percent of 45-64 year olds correctly identified
the use-by date.
- Of particular concern was that older respondents were more
likely to eat food past its ‘use by’ date. For example 40 percent
would eat dairy products up to three days past their ‘use by’ date
– listeria has been reported from dairy products as well as a wide
range of other chilled ready to eat foods. Only a third of people
(34 percent) aged over 65 would never eat dairy past its use by
date, compared to over half of people aged 16-24 (56 percent) and
25-44 (54 percent) and 40 percent of those aged 45-64.
- Less than half (39 percent) of people aged over 65 checked
their fridge temperature at least every six months – setting the
right fridge temperature (between 0C and 5C) is important for
controlling listeria growth in food.
Other research commissioned by the
FSA into the over 60s' attitudes
towards food safety, showed that people were reluctant to throw
food away and were often confused by fridge temperatures.
The FSA has also carried out surveys
to determine the prevalence of listeria in foods that have been
linked to the bug, such as smoked fish and sliced meats. It is also
commissioning research to understand what makes the over 60s more
likely to become ill from listeria.
For more information contact our
Food and Safety
team.
