The Republic of Moldova annually registers between 16,000 and 20,000 cases of acute diarrheal diseases. The problem disproportionately affects children so that 75% of all the reported cases concern children. This situation also leads to loss of life, with up to 10 deaths recorded annually, including among children under the age of 5, who are the most vulnerable ones. The data were presented by the National Public Health Agency on the occasion of World Food Safety Day, IPN reports.

In order to prevent diseases caused by unsafe food and water, the population is encouraged to comply with the World Health Organization’s principles of food safety, such as separating raw and cooked to prevent cross-contamination, using quality water for food preparation. Before cooking and eating food, it is important to wash the hands, clean the utensils, surfaces and use sanitized raw materials, and to keep food at safe temperature to prevent them from spoiling.

This year, World Food Safety Day is held under the theme “Food Safety: Prepare for the Unexpected”. The event is an opportunity to highlight the role that safe food has for human health and well-being and to urge to take concrete actions to improve food safety.

Each year worldwide, unsafe food causes 600 million cases of foodborne diseases and 420,000 deaths. About 40% of foodborne deaths occur among children under 5 years of age. At the same time, they are most frequently affected by malnutrition. Over 200 illnesses – from acute diarrheal diseases to cancer – are caused by eating food contaminated with bacteria, viruses, parasites or chemicals, such as heavy metals.