Food Safety Glossary of Terms

Bacteria: Single-celled microorganisms which can exist either as independent (free-living) organisms or as parasites (dependent upon another organism for life).
See the entire definition of Bacteria

Diarrhea : A familiar phenomenon with unusually frequent or unusually liquid bowel movements, excessive watery evacuations of fecal material. The opposite of constipation . The word "diarrhea" with its odd spelling is a near steal from the Greek "diarrhoia" meaning "a flowing through." Plato and Aristotle may have had diarrhoia while today we have diarrhea. There are myriad infectious and noninfectious causes of diarrhea.
See the entire definition of Diarrhea

Expiration date: The date for a drug estimated for its shelf life with proper storage in sealed containers away from harmful and variable factors like heat and humidity.
See the entire definition of Expiration date

FDA: The Food and Drug Administration, an agency within the U.S. Public Health Service, which is a part of the Department of Health and Human Services.
See the entire definition of FDA

Fever : Although a fever technically is any body temperature above the normal of 98.6 degrees F. (37 degrees C.), in practice a person is usually not considered to have a significant fever until the temperature is above 100.4 degrees F (38 degrees C.).
See the entire definition of Fever

Food poisoning : A common flu-like illness typically characterized by nausea, vomiting and diarrhea , due to something the victim ate or drank that contained noxious bacteria, viruses, parasites, metals or toxins.
See the entire definition of Food poisoning

Immune: Protected against infection. The Latin immunis means free, exempt.

MPH: Master of Public Health (a master's degree in this field of medicine).

Nausea: Nausea, is the urge to vomit. It can be brought by many causes including, systemic illnesses, such as influenza, medications, pain, and inner ear disease. When nausea and/or vomiting are persistent, or when they are accompanied by other severe symptoms such as abdominal pain, jaundice, fever, or bleeding, a physician should be consulted.

PCBs: PolyChlorinated Biphenyls, a mixture of up to 209 chlorinated chemicals. Although PCBs are no longer produced in the US where they were once known under the trade name Aroclor, PCBs are still found in the environment . A number of adverse health effects have associated with exposure to PCBs.
See the entire definition of PCBs

Poisoning: Taking a substance that is injurious to health or can cause death. Poisoning is still a major hazard to children, despite child-resistant (and sometimes adult-resistant) packaging and dose-limits per container.
See the entire definition of Poisoning

Viruses: Small living particles that can infect cells and change how the cells function. Infection with a virus can cause a person to develop symptoms. The disease and symptoms that are caused depend on the type of virus and the type of cells that are infected.

Weight loss: Weight loss is a decrease in body weight resulting from either voluntary (diet, exercise) or involuntary (illness) circumstances. Most instances of weight loss arise due to the loss of body fat, but in cases of extreme or severe weight loss, protein and other substances in the body can also be depleted. Examples of involuntary weight loss include the weight loss associated with cancer, malabsorption (such as from chronic diarrheal illnesses ), and chronic inflammation (such as with rheumatoid arthritis).