Los Angeles woman says you’re probably poisoning yourself if you cook at home: “This is for the ‘my stomach always hurts and idk why’ crowd”
What you don’t know about food safety may be poisoning you. Or at a minimum, it could be behind those pesky stomach issues you chalk up to a virus or digestion.
This is according to Los Angeles-based creator Melody (@jazmelodyy). A few weeks ago, Melody posted some food safety advice for at-home cooks that may surprise you.
Her TikTok has taken off. As of this writing, it’s got 2.8 million views.
Melody’s advice has people offering their own kitchen rules-of-thumb that may keep you from sprinting to the bathroom with the bubble guts over the holidays.
How are you poisoning yourself?
Melody makes a bold claim: you’re the reason your stomach is upset. An on-screen caption reads, “You’re accidentally giving yourself food poisoning!!!”
“You don’t know basic food safety tips,” she says. “But that’s OK, we’re going to learn today.”
Melody brandishes an open jar of soup. “There’s gonna be a date on here,” she says, tapping it with a fingernail. “This will say ‘best before.'” Her soup says it’s best by February 2027.
But that doesn’t mean she can wait to finish the jar.
“This date is only if you haven’t opened it. Once you have opened it and started consuming it, you only have seven to 10 days max. It really depends on the product,” she continues.
Melody explains that an open jar is exposed to oxygen, which creates an environment in which bacteria can grow.
That bacteria, she says, is bad for your stomach.
“We do not want bad bacteria in our tummy,” Melody says.
What does the bacteria do?
Many associate food poisoning with eating out, but most cases of food poisoning happen at home or at outdoor gatherings. Think deviled eggs, potato salad, sandwiches, etc.
Further, many stomach bugs people complain of are actually—you guessed it—food poisoning.
The symptoms of each are quite similar. Both primarily cause diarrhea. Common symptoms also include nausea, vomiting, fever, and chills.
In extremely rare cases, and even less so for healthy people, either can be fatal. It’s important to rest, hydrate, and seek medical attention if symptoms are severe or prolonged.
How do you avoid food poisoning?
Melody is right that prepared foods with lengthy shelf lives nevertheless begin decomposing at a much faster rate after they’re opened.
Other basic at-home food safety advice includes cleaning, separating, cooking, and chilling:
- Clean hands, surfaces, and utensils;
- Separate raw meats, seafood, and eggs from produce, condiments, other refrigerated items, and prepared food;
- Cook and reheat food to the proper temperature; and
- Chill foods promptly and to the proper refrigeration temperature.
In the comments section, people offered their own food safety tips of varying reliability. Much of it boiled down to the reasonable advice of paying attention to your senses. If something looks, smells, or tastes off, don’t eat or drink it.
“The sniff test, never fails,” Matt Hicks asserted.
Another commenter added that “if pasta sauce doesn’t have mold on the lid and smells fine it’s still good is my rule.”
Some people who said they have obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) expressed gratitude for the disorder for inspiring them not to eat foods that were more than two or three days old.
Several were horrified. They said they’d never heard this advice before. They’re not alone.
“A lot of my friends don’t know this,” Melody says. “They’re giving themselves literal food poisoning and throwing up. Or even if they’re not, they’re getting stomach problems, they’re getting like gut reactions, like their gut is just messed up.”
She did not respond to a direct message sent via TikTok.
@jazmelodyy some foods will also say how many days you have to eat it after opening but if not, look it up
♬ original sound – Jaz Melody
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