# Wholefood-Cook-Eat Shield 

A simple, effective mantra to reduce hidden microbial and toxin risks in everyday life.  
A fun but useful README that make you think about (food) safety

---

## The Three Rules

1. Wholefoods
   
   Keep skins, peels, shells, and natural barriers intact until the moment you eat.  

3. Eat immediately
   
   Avoid leftovers or pre-prepared foods that sit at room temperature.  

4. Cook if you can
   
   Heat kills most harmful bacteria, parasites, and viruses.  
  
---

##  Extra habits
- Boil or filter water before drinking  
- Wash hands before handling food 
- Use nasal or hand hygiene routines  
- Store foods properly (cool, dry, airtight)   

---

## Food-Specific Risks

Click on the arrow to expand advice and risks.

<details>
<summary>💧 Tap Water & Ice</summary>
- Risks: 
   🦠 Cryptosporidium, Giardia, rare amoebas 
   🧠 Naegleria fowleri 
   
- Advice: Boil/filter, avoid nasal exposure  
</details>

<details>
<summary>💧 Bottled Water</summary>
- Risks: ⚠️ Possible nano-plastic particles (long-term exposure effects still under study)
  
- Advice: Prefer filtered or boiled water if concerned, avoid long-term storage of bottled water in heat
  
</details>

<details>
<summary>🍚 Rice</summary>
- Risks: 🦠 *Bacillus cereus* (spore-forming bacteria survives cooking)  
   
- Advice: Eat immediately, avoid leftovers  
</details>

<details>
<summary>🥜 Peanuts & Nuts</summary>
- Risks: 
   ⚠️ Aflatoxins from mold, 
   🦠 bacteria in cracked nuts  
   
- Advice: Prefer whole, intact nuts, store cool & dry  
</details>

<details>
<summary>🥬 Leafy Greens</summary>
- Risks: 
   🦠 E. coli, Salmonella
   
- Advice: Wash carefully, eat fresh  
</details>

<details>
<summary>🌱 Raw Sprouts</summary>
- Risks: 🦠 *E. coli*, *Salmonella*, *Listeria* 
   
- Who is at higher risk: 👶 Infants, 🧓 Elderly adults, and anyone with weakened immunity
   
- Advice:
  
  - Cook sprouts thoroughly before eating  
  - Avoid raw sprouts for high-risk groups  
  - Keep refrigerated and eat quickly after purchase
</details>

<details>
<summary>🍅 Tomatoes & Sauces</summary>
- Risks: 
   🦠 Surface bacteria, spores in stored sauce

- Advice: Wash, cook fresh, eat immediately  
</details>

<details>
<summary>🍊 Fruits with Peels</summary>
- Risks: 
   ⚠️ Pesticides, 
   🦠 bacteria on skin
   
- Advice: Wash, eat whole if clean, avoid pre-peeled unless very fresh  
</details>

<details>
<summary>🍏 Cracked Fruits & Nuts</summary>
- Risks: 
   ⚠️ Mold spores, aflatoxins, bacteria  
   
- Advice: Prefer intact produce, inspect before eating  
</details>

<details>
<summary>🥩 Meats</summary>
- Risks: 
   🦠 Listeria, Salmonella, Clostridium perfringens
   
- Advice: Cook thoroughly, avoid long storage  
</details>

<details>
<summary>🍯 Honey & Corn syrup</summary>
- Risks: 🦠 Clostridium botulinum spores (especially dangerous for infants under 1 year) 
   
- Advice:  
  - Do not give honey to babies under 12 months
   
  - For adults and older children, the risk is minimal
    
  - Store in a cool, dry place  
</details>

<details>
<summary>🐟🦀 Fish & Seafood</summary>
- Risks: 
   
  🦠 Vibrio bacteria, parasites, Listeria (especially in raw, smoked, or undercooked seafood) 
   
  ⚠️ Shellfish like crabs, oysters, clams, and mussels can concentrate bacteria and toxins  

- Who is at higher risk: 🧓 Elderly, immunocompromised individuals, infants  

- Advice:
  - Cook seafood thoroughly before eating  
  - Avoid raw shellfish and raw fish if you are high-risk  
  - Keep refrigerated and eat quickly after purchase  
  - Be extra cautious with shellfish from unmonitored waters
</details>

<details>
<summary>🥚 Eggs</summary>
- Risks: 
   🦠 Salmonella 
   
- Advice: Cook fully, avoid cracked/old eggs  
</details>

<details>
<summary>🥛 Milk & Dairy</summary>
- Risks: 
   🦠 Listeria, E. coli, Salmonella
   
- Advice: Prefer pasteurized, consume immediately  
</details>

<details>
<summary>🌾 Grains & Flour</summary>
- Risks: 
   🦠 E. coli, 
   ⚠️ mold spores  
   
- Advice: Store dry/cool, cook or bake before eating  
</details>

<details>
<summary>🍲 Leftovers</summary>
- Risks: 
   🦠 Bacillus cereus, Clostridium (rapid bacteria growth)  
   
- Advice: Eat fresh, refrigerate immediately if storing, avoid reheating multiple times  
</details>

<details>
<summary>🍲 Canned Food</summary>
- Risks: 
   🦠 Clostridium botulinum (botulism toxin if can is damaged or improperly processed) 
   
- ⚠️ Other bacteria may grow once opened and stored too long
  
- Advice:  
   
  - Inspect cans before use - avoid dents, bulges, or rust
    
  - Eat immediately after opening
    
  - Avoid reheating multiple times
    
</details>

<details>
<summary>🍲 Vacuumized / Oxygen-Free Foods</summary>
- Risks: 🦠 Clostridium botulinum (botulism toxin)  
- Generally includes foods with low oxygen or low acidity: 
   
  - Vacuum-packed fish
    
  - Acid-free juices (e.g., carrot juice)
    
  - Homemade foods preserved in oil
    
  - Improperly canned food
    
  - food cooked in aluminium. (BBQ etc)
    
- Advice:
  
  - Prefer foods that are properly processed
     
  - Refrigerate after opening
    
  - Eat quickly and avoid long storage
    
</details>

<details>
<summary>🌊 Rivers & Lakes</summary>
- Risks: 
   🦠 Bacteria, parasites, amoebas, 
   ⚠️ chemical runoff  
   
- Advice: Avoid swallowing water, rinse immediately, prefer monitored swimming areas  
</details>

<details>
<summary>🪴 Soil & Garden</summary>
- Risks: 
   🦠 Toxoplasma, hookworms  
   
- Advice: Wash hands, wear gloves, avoid hand-to-mouth contact  
</details>

---

### Food Cooked in Aluminum
- Risks: ⚠️ Potential aluminum leaching, especially with acidic foods (tomato, citrus, vinegar)  
- Who is at higher risk: Elderly adults, people with kidney issues  
- Advice:  
  - Avoid prolonged cooking of acidic foods in aluminum foil or pans  
  - Use alternatives like stainless steel, cast iron, or glass for cooking acidic dishes  
  - Limit direct contact of highly acidic marinades with aluminum
    
## Special Considerations for Infants & Elderly

Some foods carry higher risks for people with weaker immune systems, including infants under 1 year and elderly adults. Follow these guidelines:

### High-Risk Foods for Infants
- 🍯 Honey - can contain spores that infants cannot safely process  
- 🌽 Corn syrup - same reason as honey  
- 🥚 Raw or undercooked eggs  
- 🥛 Raw milk or soft cheeses made from raw milk  
- 🧀 Soft Cheeses - like brie!
- 🌱 Raw Sprouts
    
### High-Risk Foods for Elderly
- 🥩 Undercooked meats - risk of *Listeria*, *Salmonella*  
- 🍲 Leftovers not eaten immediately - bacteria multiply quickly  
- 🥬 Leafy greens and pre-cut vegetables - can harbor *E. coli* or *Listeria*  
- 🍚 Cooked rice stored too long - *Bacillus cereus* spores  
- 🍲 Canned food - avoid dented, bulging, or damaged cans  
- 🧀 Soft Cheeses - like brie!
- 🌱 Raw Sprouts

### General Advice
- Follow the Wholefood → Cook → Eat immediately mantra  
- Wash hands, wash produce, boil/filter water if unsure  
- Store food properly (cool, dry, airtight)  


### Summary
- Whole → Cook → Eat immediately covers most microbial and toxin risks.  
- Extra hygiene habits (hands, water, nasal care) give additional protection.  
- This visual GitHub version is easy to scan and expand - new foods or risks can be added in collapsible sections.