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Thanksgiving can be a source of foodborne illnesses if proper food storage and preparation techniques are not followed, according to a senior official with the City of San Antonio's Metropolitan Health District.
Symptoms of food poisoning include vomiting, diarrhea, and other flu-like complaints, which can lead to hospitalizations and, on rare occasions, death.
Those symptoms can start within a few hours to a few days of eating contaminated food.
Jesse Roel Jr., a senior environmental health officer with Metro Health, said a good start to a healthy Thanksgiving is a meat thermometer, so purchase one if you are without this holiday. He said you'll need to check your turkey temperature in three spots before carving it up.
"Stick it in the thickest part of the meat and breast, as well as in the thigh area. And if you have stuffing, stick it in the stuffing," he said. "We do want 165 degrees Fahrenheit. That's the temperature we're looking for, to let us know if the turkey is done."
Roel said leaving turkey and all the trimmings out on a counter buffet style for guests to serve themselves should not be done over a long period. He said leftovers should be refrigerated within 2 or 3 hours.
Other food preparation tips from Roel include:
- Keep food preparation areas clean
- Keep raw meat separated from vegetables, fruits, and cooked items to prevent cross contamination
- Wash hands frequently between food handling tasks, such as between handling raw meat and chopping vegetables
- Dispose of all leftover foods after three or four days
