Staph Germs and Cross Contamination

Staph germs are in the news. Last night and today the news channels have been blasting us with the information that there are Staph germs in our meats.  They aren't even sure  if cooking the meats are killing Staph! Everyone running for the disinfectant. But before you start spraying make sure you use some good old soap and hot water to get the Staph germs off your counters and your hands. Yes that's right - soap and water. And be very careful of cross contamination. Here are a few tips after working with raw meat:

• Use your elbows to turn on the water faucet. If you have Staph germs on your hands you will contaminate the faucet when you turn the water on to wash them.
• Get a touchless soap dispenser to get soap onto your hands. Soap and water will remove the Staph germs from your hands, but you can't touch the soap dispenser until your hands are clean.
• Put any cleaning cloths you use on your counters directly into the washing machine.
• Don't use sponges to wipe off the counters. If you are one of those people that has to use a sponge, you can disinfect them by placing them in the microwave - wet- for 3 minutes. 
• Keep a nail brush under you counter and use it to clean your hands after touching raw meat. Scrub your hands and nails with soap and hot water. Then put the brush in the dishwasher to clean it.
• Make sure you wash your hands for an "alphabet". Just like we learned in preschool, sing the alphabet song so you make sure you wash all the germs off your hands.