Obsessed with hand washing, disturbed by sharing used utensils and adhere to food sanitation rules as if they were a religious sacrament? Yep, that would be me. Living as an independent college student in my own apartment these past couple of years, I have come to self-identify as a germaphobe who proudly embraces the art of cleanliness and sanitation. Though my efforts never fail to irritate the s**t out of my friends and family and evoke plenty annoyed rolling-of-the-eyes, I retain my dignity in this lifestyle because I am convinced it directly correlates to my personal track record of good health and my ability to establish beneficial life habits. I have managed to chisel what many be called a compulsive disorder into a valuable skill set which I am about to share with you. It can be a pretty gross world out there to live in, but with a few tips, you'll be on your way to building your personal purity protection bubble.
IN THE KITCH
This section is dedicated to my beautiful sis, who, bless her soul, drives me insane when she complains to me on a weekly basis of her strange, mystery stomach aches she gets. Whenever I ask about her symptoms and what she had eaten that day, her explanations always end in telling me about eating multiple day old meals, snacking on lukewarm food, or chancing the "mayo factor", as I like to call it (we'll get back to that in a moment). Her experiences compel me to educate others on food safety and the proper food storage.
Cans
I recently learned that it is unsafe to store leftover foods in their respective cans as storage for the refrigerator. If you have extra beans or tomato sauce that you want to use later, always remember to empty the contents from the metal can and store in a plastic or glass airtight container. This will prevent bacteria from growing inside the container and preserve the food's flavor. No one likes a irony, blood-like undertone added to their foods.
Dairy Products
This should be a given, but apparently, incorrectly storing foods made with dairy is a common problem. Every type of leftover should really be placed into a refrigerator ASAP, but you need to be especially careful with those creamy dips, cheesy sandwiches, and mayonnaise concoctions. These guys are quickest to spoil. Leave them sitting out for just a moment too long could send you running to the bathroom at the high cost of food poisoning - not pretty. And sorry, but the smell test won't work for evaluating leftover food with dairy. My advice: if you are the least bit doubtful of the freshness of the food, toss it. Better to be safe than sorry.
Cross Contamination
Cooking with raw meats is no joke, and I'm OCD about keeping my kitchen space from turning into a jungle of life-threatening / pain-inducing germs that can, and will, breed. First, whenever you touch a raw piece of meat, immediately wash your hands with warm water and soap when you finish handling it. I like to reserve a separate cutting board, knife, and any other plates or bowls I might need just for the raw meats in my meal preparation. This avoids the dangers of infecting say, innocent veggies, on the same, unwashed, salmonella covered cutting board that you previously used for cutting the chicken. This results in cross contamination, and now the veggies are no good. Always thoroughly wash anything that has come into contact with raw meats, and do NOT forget the soap! The whole point is to disinfect, so a simple water rinse is not enough.
PUBLIC RESTROOMS
Door Handles
Sadly, most people do not wash their hands after they use the toilet like they should. When they exit their stall, they open the restroom door, thereby, spreading any of the leftover bacteria and germs from their personal business for the next person to touch. I love that more and more businesses are beginning to implement the hand sanitizer stations by the doors of restrooms, which helps us hand-washers out and keeps us extra, squeaky clean. However, if you don't have access to hand sanitizer upon exiting the restroom, grab some extra paper towels and use them to open the door. This way, you avoid skin contact with the infected handle; the tricky part is throwing the towels out into the trash as fast as you can while the door quickly shuts behind you. If you miss, you miss..your health and safety is number one!
Purses and Bags
I'll never forget one of the most influential and impressive talks I heard given on the Tyra Banks TV talk show when I was in middle school that changed my public habits forever. It's never fun to lug your dangly purse and/or bulky backpack into those tiny bathroom stalls that may or may not have a hanging hook inside for you. This dilemma is real for us college students, always on the go, and always having to go - if you know what I mean. Whatever you do, NEVER put your bags or any of your belongings on the floor. According to Ms. Tyra and her experts, public restroom floors are filthier than you could imagine, packed with harmful germs and bacteria like E. coli. So, unless you don't mind using your bag to sweep up leftover fecal matter, I suggest you hang it up. If there is no hook, I like to wear my backpack backwards up against my chest. No one has to know how weird you look behind the closed stall door...
