This is National Public Health Week, a time to recognize the contributions of public health and highlight issues that are important to improving our nation.  This year’s theme is, “Public Health: Start Here” and each day has a specific focus.  The system that keeps our nation’s food safe and healthy is complex.  The Affordable Care Act extends to food safety and information with new requirements for food labeling.  Under the new law, restaurants are required to list the number of calories in each standard menu item, must put the caloric content in context, additional nutritional information must be made available to consumers and the number of calories per serving must be visible on self-service foods.  The Dietary Guidelines for Americans of 2010, emphasizes three major goals for Americans: Balance calories with physical activity to manage weight, consume more of certain foods and nutrients such as fruits, vegetables, whole grains, fat-free and low-fat dairy products, and seafood, and consume fewer foods with sodium, saturated fats, trans fats, cholesterol, added sugars and refined grains.  The Department of Health and Human Services’ Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion is working with the U.S. Department of Agriculture and other government agencies to revise the dietary guidelines for release in 2015.  In total, we are now eating 31 percent more calories than we were 40 years ago — including 56 percent more fats and oils and 14 percent more sugars and sweeteners.  The average American now eats 15 more pounds of sugar a year than in 1970.  USDA led efforts to pass the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act, legislation that paves the way to make real reforms to the school lunch and breakfast programs by improving the critical nutrition and hunger safety net for nearly 32 million children who eat school lunch each day and the 12 million who eat breakfast at school.

Also, food borne contaminants cause an average of 5,000 deaths, 325,000 hospitalizations and 76 million illnesses and cost billions of dollars annually.  The five most common food borne pathogens cost the U.S. economy more than $44 billion each year in medical costs and lost productivity.  Chilling foods to proper temperatures is one of the best ways to slow the growth of bacteria.  An efficient kitchen refrigerator is the most effective tool in protecting families from food-borne illnesses.  Make sure refrigerators are kept at 40° F or below; the freezer should be at 0° F.  Since few refrigerator controls show actual temperatures, using an inexpensive freestanding appliance thermometer can monitor temperatures to make sure they’re at the right levels for optimal food safety.