Chapter 6 Personal Hygiene and Sanitary Food Handling
Food handlers can transmit bacteria
causing illness. In fact, humans are the
major source of food contamination. Their
hands, breath, hair, and perspiration con-
taminate food, as can their unguarded
coughs and sneezes, which can transmit
microorganisms capable of causing illness.
Transfer of human and animal excreta by
workers is a potential source of pathogenic
microorganisms that can invade the food
supply.
By necessity, the food industry is focusing
more on employee education and training
and emphasizing that supervisors and work-
ers be familiar with the principles of food
protection. In multiunit chain operations,
the negative effects of public opinion often
spiral outward to uninvolved units.
Personal hygiene......................................................................................
The word hygieneis used to describe an
application of sanitary principles for the
preservation of health. Personal hygiene
refers to the cleanliness of a person’s body.
The health of workers plays an important
part in food sanitation. People are potential
sources of microorganisms that cause illness
in others through the transmission of viruses
or through food poisoning.
Employee Hygiene
Ill employees should not come in contact
with food or equipment and utensils used in
the processing, preparation, and serving of
food. Human illnesses that may be transmit-
ted through food are diseases of the respira-
tory tract, such as common cold, sore throat,
pneumonia, scarlet fever, tuberculosis, and
trench mouth; intestinal disorders; dysen-
tery; typhoid fever; and infectious hepatitis.
In many illnesses, the disease-causing
microorganisms may remain with the person
after recovery. A person with this condition
is known as a carrier.
When employees become ill, their poten-
tial as a source of contamination increases.
Staphylococci are normally found in and
around boils, acne, carbuncles, infected cuts,
and eyes and ears. A sinus infection, sore
throat, nagging cough, and other symptoms
of the common cold are further signs that
microorganisms are increasing in number.
The same principle applies to gastrointesti-
nal ailments, such as diarrhea or an upset
stomach. Even when evidence of illness
passes, some of the causative microorgan-
isms may remain as a source of recontami-
nation. For example, Salmonellae may
persist for several months after the employee
has recovered. The virus responsible for83