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[K14]Keep From Getting Sick

by Kirsten Whittaker, Kir

These marvels of modern ingenuity have made it possible to prepare all kinds of foods —everything from popcorn and side dishes to full blown meals — in much less time (and with much less mess) than the dinosaur of the cooking world… the conventional oven.

But just last week, the US government issued a new warning about frozen chicken dinners being cooked in a microwave oven after 32 people in 12 states got sick.

This comes on the heels of scares in 2007 concerning microwaving pot pies and frozen pizzas that had also made people sick.

Frozen food manufacturer's have since revamped the cooking instructions on these and other products to be sure they allow enough cooking time to kill off any lingering bacteria.

But you do need to know the wattage of your microwave to use the directions so that you and your family stay safe. The higher the wattage a microwave has, the faster it cooks; smaller ovens may also not deliver enough wattage to cook some items properly. You can find the wattage of a microwave by:

- Checking the inside of the oven door for the wattage.
- Looking on the serial number plate on the back of the unit.
- Checking the owner's manual you got with the oven.
- Doing a "Time-to-Boil" test to estimate the wattage.

You also need to understand that for all their sleek looks and high tech ways, microwaving is an uneven cooking method — heat penetrates only an inch to 1½ inches into the surface, leaving cold spots that can harbor bacteria like E. coli, salmonella or listeria. Nasty, contagious little monsters, these organisms enter your digestive tract and leave you feeling as sick as you've ever been for several days at best, a week or more at worst.

Last year over 325,000 people were admitted to hospitals with food related illnesses cause by these organisms. That old fashioned oven isn't looking so bad now, is it?

“I think most food safety experts probably would have said it's not a good idea to microwave anything that's from a raw state.” said Michael Davidson, a University of Tennessee microbiologist. Microwaving foods like raw meat, eggs or poultry is a recipe for trouble.

But, if you're not ready to rip out your trusty microwave just yet, here are some things to keep in mind to prepare food safely:

- Look at packages to see if frozen meals are precooked — you might think they are, they may look like they are, but in fact are not cooked at all. Look for “Cook thoroughly” on the front of a package.

- Heat microwaveable foods thoroughly and be sure to adjust your cooking time based on the wattage of the microwave you're using. Lower wattages need more cooking time.

- Follow the package instructions carefully, and be sure the microwave you're using is the proper wattage identified in the recipe.

- Use only microwave safe dishes and utensils, and cover foods with a lid or plastic wrap that's allowed to vent.

- Stir foods (or turn) halfway through cooking time, this helps eliminate cold spots where bacteria can linger.

- Use a food thermometer in more than one place, to check the temperature of anything prepared in the microwave. Be sure to allow the food to stand, if needed, for the full length of time stated in the package directions before taking the temperature.

By following these common sense suggestions and teaching everyone in the house to do the same, you'll significantly reduce the chance of suffering food poisoning from undercooked foods as a result of microwave cooking.

If you borrow by taking out a loan or credit cards then you have to be able to continue repaying each month. If you cannot then you are going to get into debt and the lender might take steps such as taking you to court. At the very least you will see your credit rating decline. One way of ensuring that you are able to continue repaying if you should lose your income is by taking out loan payment protection. A policy would payout for a loss of income due to unemployment by such as redundancy or if you are unfit for work after becoming ill or suffering from an accident.

You can have loan payment cover added onto the borrowing at the time of taking it out. However this is usually the dearest option and you can get protection for a lot cheaper. High street lenders have been known to calculate the cost of loan protection into the entire loan and then add interest on top of this. This means that in some cases borrowings can almost double.

Those who specialise in offering loan cover will take into account how old you are and the amount that you wish to cover each month, providers will allow you to insure up to a certain amount. The amount that you protect will be what you receive if and when you need to put in a claim.

All specialist providers will payout after a certain amount of time of being unemployed or of being incapacitated. When and for how long any cover you are considering will payout can be found in the small print of the conditions, you can also find out what exclusions have to be met for the product to be suitable for your circumstances.

Usually a policy will begin to provide benefit between 30 and 90 days with some providers offering to backdate your benefit to the very first day of you losing your job or of being unfit to work. Upon commencement of payout you would receive benefit each month for a certain length of time and then the policy expires. Some providers offer 12 monthly payments while others could offer 24 months protection.

Faith in loan payment protection has dropped since the investigation by the Office of Fair Trading and the Financial Services Authority started in 2005. As a result several well known high street names were handed fines and it was brought to light that policies has been sold to those who could not hope to claim against the protection they had bought. There are exclusions to be found in all policies and so you do have to check them against your circumstances before taking the cover. Some providers will add in more exclusions than others so it is essential to compare the conditions before taking out the policy. Loan protection can and does work providing you have checked them before buying and standalone providers always provide the information for you to be able to do so.

Article Source : Horde Fishing And Cooking Guide

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Both Kirsten Whittaker & Simon Burgess are contributors for EditorialToday. The above articles have been edited for relevancy and timeliness. All write-ups, reviews, tips and guides published by EditorialToday.com and its partners or affiliates are for informational purposes only. They should not be used for any legal or any other type of advice. We do not endorse any author, contributor, writer or article posted by our team.

Kirsten Whittaker has sinced written about articles on various topics from Types of Cancer, Business Intelligence and Travel and Leisure. Over 14,000 people have joined Kirsten's popular (and sometimes controversial) , so why not join them and stay up to date with the latest. Kirsten Whittaker's top article generates over 450000 views. to your Favourites.

Simon Burgess has sinced written about articles on various topics from Mortgage Insurance, Finances and Income Protection Insurance. Simon Burgess is Managing Director of the award-winning , a specialist provider of. Simon Burgess's top article generates over 74000 views. to your Favourites.