ILLINOIS (WCIA) — While you may be preparing to host Thanksgiving dinner on Thursday, the Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH) is reminding people to protect themselves from foodborne and respiratory illnesses.
IDPH and the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) said thawing your turkey the proper way is one key to staying healthy. It takes about 24 hours for every five pounds to thaw in the fridge. You can also use a sink of cold water but do not leave it on the counter.
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It’s also important to keep hot foods hot and cold foods cold. You can find IDPH’s four main steps for food safety at this link.
Dr. Fred Burke with OSF knows eating raw or undercooked meats can lead to a few different symptoms, such as nausea, vomiting and diarrhea.
Right now, IDPH’s dashboard shows there are “low levels” of seasonal respiratory illnesses like the flu, COVID-19 and RSV.
Dr. Burke said they usually see an uptick in sicknesses like that this time of year and recommends getting vaccinated.