The intensification and industrialization of agriculture and animal production to meet increasing demands for food creates both opportunities and challenges for food safety. Nowadays, people have been inclined in eating too much food in a single day. They tend to devour food beyond their normal food consumption thus, affecting their metabolism rate. Similarly, people are sometimes neglecting the food quality of what they eat before intake therefore increasing the risk of food poisoning, threatening the health and safety of those who are affected. Therefore, how can we reduce food poisoning? What precautionary measures should be done to eradicate food poisoning?

                Food poisoning, also called foodborne illness, is the result of eating contaminated, spoiled, or toxic food commonly caused by infectious organisms such as bacteria, viruses, and parasites that are found on expired food, uncooked food, and contaminated food. Food poisoning may show symptoms within minutes to hours after intake, this includes, nausea, headache, vomiting, fever, watery or bloody diarrhea, abdominal pains and cramps. The most common serious complication of food poisoning is dehydration — a severe loss of water and essential salts and minerals.

                According to World Health Organization (WHO), 1 out of 10 people fall ill after eating contaminated food wherein approximately 420,000 people worldwide die yearly. Unsafe food containing harmful bacteria, viruses, parasites or chemical substances, causes more than 200 diseases – ranging from diarrhea to cancers.

                Several risk factors are adhered after consuming contaminated food, some populations that are more at risk than others. Anyone with a suppressed immune system or an auto-immune disease may have a greater risk of infection and a greater risk of complications resulting from food poisoning.

                According to the Mayo Clinic (2019), pregnant women are more at risk because their bodies are coping with changes to their metabolism and circulatory system during pregnancy. Elderly individuals also face a greater risk of contracting food poisoning because their immune systems may not respond quickly to infectious organisms. Children are also considered an at-risk population because their immune systems aren’t as developed as those of adults. Young children are more easily affected by dehydration from vomiting and diarrhea.

                Food poisoning may be prevented by taking precautionary measures such as washing your hands, utensils and food surfaces often, keeping raw foods separate from ready-to-eat foods, cook foods to a safe temperature, cook foods to a safe temperature, cook foods to a safe temperature, and throw it out when in doubt.

                Treatments to cure food poisoning includes some of the following: adequate rest, taking antibiotic drugs, homeopathic treatment, arsenicum which is the main remedy for food poisoning, oral rehydration, and replacement of lost fluids.

                Therefore, people should be cautious on the food they eat. Food can become contaminated at any point of production and distribution, and the primary responsibility lies with food producers. Yet a large proportion of foodborne disease incidents are caused by foods improperly prepared or mishandled at home, in food service establishments or markets. Not all food handlers and consumers understand the roles they must play, such as adopting basic hygienic practices when buying, selling and preparing food to protect their health and that of the wider community.  Anyone can come down with food poisoning. Statistically speaking, nearly everyone will come down with food poisoning at least once in their lives. Moreover, people should be aware of the precautionary measures to be observed in order to cure reduce the risk of food poisoning.

                For decades, food poisoning has been relevant worldwide, thus increasing the risk of reducing health security and food safety. Whereas, several diseases and viruses have been widespread in different food products and animals accumulating the safe food resources. It is not too late to stop food poisoning, and it will not be possible without our actions to this issue.

                We know we don’t want dirty and poisonous food, all of us want to be healthy and consume clean and safe food. But several diseases have been spreading all around the globe due to food poisoning and has been affecting people at all ages. The things we like to do most may even be the reason why we get sick in the first place and a sick population would create a sick country. Our food is killing us, and we don’t even know how to stop it. Our health is very important, but because of this illness, our lives are put to risk. Every food product we consume is equal to the probability we may attain food poisoning.

                Why would we even want to attain good health if we ourselves would not even observe precautionary measures? People are getting weaker and weaker nowadays, and it is because of our irresponsible food consumption. How can this weak / sick society contribute to make a strong nation? People are spending more and more in medical care as they are getting more sick, but the medicines can’t remove the root cause. We need to make our food safe for ourselves, our families, friends, acquaintances, and most of all for the society itself. Our food should never be the reason of our illness, it should actually make us healthy. Let’s create a voice and establish a clean and safe food regulation for our future.

               Our call to safety has been heard, it is our time to begin our movement against the hazards that threaten our society today. We should raise awareness in the minds of people for us to be able to establish a strategic action in lieu to this unending problem for decades. Let us fight and repel food poisoning in order for us to attain good health and for us to live better, we must be aware of the dangers that lie within the foods that we enjoy to eat. Because some of the foods that we consume may be prone to food poisoning. Enjoying the foods while being safe is far more important than only enjoying it without knowing what hazards that lies within it.

              Food safety means good food quality. When will we start this movement? When will our eyes see the danger this issue has bestowed on humankind? When will we act? When will the society create a safe haven for people? When will food poisoning stop? The future of the global community is in our hands, and we will not succeed if we ourselves will neglect the initiative our health has established for the future. Simple yet effective steps are also needed in solving this problem, such as by doing what we can do in our simple ways, as a person who wants much more safer foods on ones plates. And we, the people, who have the initiatives must be the start of this change.