December 6, 2000 – The US government’s Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has ruled that egg containers will now carry cooking recommendations to avoid certain risks of food poisoning.
Eggs can be infected with salmonella, a bacterium that is easily destroyed during cooking. The FDA estimates that about 1 in 20,000 eggs are contaminated with the bacteria that can cause diarrhea, abdominal cramps, fever, headache, nausea, and vomiting. Most healthy people get away with it quickly, but the consequences for the elderly, people with weakened immune systems and children can be more serious and sometimes even fatal.
The label chosen by the FDA reads: “To avoid disease caused by the bacteria, keep your eggs in the refrigerator, cook them until the yolk is hard, and cook foods containing eggs completely.”
The FDA doesn’t mention whether to tear up the pages of cookbooks on Eggs Benedict, Eggs Florentine, Soft-boiled Eggs and even on the humble “mirror egg”. But we are warned: Prevention requires a hard-hearted egg.
HealthPassport.net
From Associated Press, December 1, 2000.
