Alreshoodi Fahad M, Alsuliman Bassam, Alotaibi Norah M, Althobaiti Afnan, Mukhtar Lenah E, Alsaleh Sarah, Alajlan Abdullah A, Alakeel Saleh I, Alshabrmi Fahad M, Sarwar Tarique, Alajel Sulaiman M
Saudi Food and Drug Authority (SFDA), Riyadh 13513, Saudi Arabia.
Department of Medical Laboratories, College of Applied Medical Sciences, Qassim University, Buraydah 51452, Saudi Arabia.
Microorganisms. 2024 Oct 21;12(10):2103. doi: 10.3390/microorganisms12102103.
Vegetables are an essential component of a balanced diet. The consumption of ready-to-eat foods may lead to the risk of infections and illnesses due to microbial contamination. To mitigate the potential of microbial contamination risks, it is critical to promote safe handling practices among consumers. In this study, our research evaluated the efficacy of different vegetable washing methods, specifically with lettuce, tomato, and cucumber, to establish optimal practices for reducing microbial contamination. This study consisted of two phases. Initially, a survey was distributed to 150 volunteers using snowball sampling to assess everyday vegetable handling and washing methods. The survey's results identified four predominant methods: washing with a 5% vinegar solution for 3 min followed by tap water rinse (37.3% of participants), rinsing with tap water for 1 min (29.3%), washing with a 5% salt solution (vegetable soap) for 3 min followed by a tap water rinse (16.6%), and a 3 min tap water rinse (14%). A minor segment (3.33%) reported not washing their vegetables at all. The survey's findings guided the second phase, which tested the aforementioned washing protocols' effectiveness in reducing () levels on spiked contaminated salad vegetables. The tested vegetables were sterilized using UV light, inoculated with 0.5 McFarland , and then washed using the four identified methods. After that, enumeration after washing was performed using 3M™ Petrifilm and the comparison was analyzed via one-way ANOVA. During this study, it was revealed that the cucumbers had the highest contamination levels in comparison to the lettuce and tomato after washing. Interestingly, by comparing the three washing methods, it was found that washing the vegetables with vinegar proved to be the most effective solution for reducing microbial presence on both lettuce and cucumbers. Notably, the natural smoothness of tomato skin led to no significant differences in contamination levels across washing methods. In summary, vinegar washing effectively reduces microbial contamination from salad vegetables, highlighting the need for informed consumer practices to prevent foodborne outbreaks. This study emphasizes the importance of monitoring contamination sources and using safe washing techniques.
蔬菜是均衡饮食的重要组成部分。即食食品的消费可能会因微生物污染而导致感染和患病风险。为降低微生物污染风险，促进消费者采取安全处理措施至关重要。在本研究中，我们的研究评估了不同蔬菜清洗方法的效果，特别是针对生菜、番茄和黄瓜，以确立减少微生物污染的最佳做法。本研究包括两个阶段。最初，通过滚雪球抽样向150名志愿者发放调查问卷，以评估日常蔬菜处理和清洗方法。调查结果确定了四种主要方法：用5%的醋溶液清洗3分钟，然后用自来水冲洗（37.3%的参与者）；用自来水冲洗1分钟（29.3%）；用5%的盐溶液（蔬菜皂）清洗3分钟，然后用自来水冲洗（16.6%）；以及用自来水冲洗3分钟（14%）。一小部分（3.33%）报告根本不清洗蔬菜。调查结果指导了第二阶段，该阶段测试了上述清洗方案在降低加标污染沙拉蔬菜上的（）水平方面的有效性。将测试蔬菜用紫外线消毒，接种0.5麦氏单位，然后使用确定的四种方法进行清洗。之后，使用3M™ 测试片进行清洗后计数，并通过单因素方差分析进行比较分析。在本研究中，结果显示，与生菜和番茄相比，黄瓜在清洗后的污染水平最高。有趣的是，通过比较三种清洗方法，发现用醋清洗蔬菜被证明是减少生菜和黄瓜上微生物存在的最有效解决方案。值得注意的是，番茄表皮的天然光滑度导致不同清洗方法下的污染水平没有显著差异。总之，用醋清洗能有效减少沙拉蔬菜上的微生物污染，凸显了消费者采取明智做法以预防食源性疾病爆发的必要性。本研究强调了监测污染源和使用安全清洗技术的重要性。
