Why can you still get sick when you eat cooked meat that has been unchilled for too long?

Question

The same goes for other types of foods like eggs.

If cooking food kills the bacteria why does it matter if you leave the food out for too long?

Im not talking about things like completely rotten meat, but my concept of cooking is that basically 99% of the bacteria in food is killed if you cook it to be “well-done”.

So if the bacteria is dead, then why can you still contract foodborne illnesses from it?

In: Biology

Answer 1

* The kind of bacteria that can make you sick is always in the air in small amounts.
* Any food left out at room temperature for too long can collect this bacteria and give it a place to grow to a point where it can make you sick.
* This is why it’s important to cover food that isn’t going to be eaten in the very near future, even when it’s in the refrigerator.