Have you ever had food poisoning? Get the down-low on the dirtiest foods.

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If you've ever had a case of food poisoning, you'll know why it's so important to keep cooking surfaces clean and to properly wash your food. Every step you can take to minimize the spread of bacteria and viruses is well worth it. All You Magazine has 7 steps for germ-free cooking:

• Use separate cutting boards. Use one cutting board for meats and another for fruit, vegetables, and anything else. Avoid wooden cutting boards as they can trap bacteria. Be sure to clean your cutting boards thoroughly after each use.
• Scrub fruits and veggies. Even if it says pre-washed, take the time to scrub fruits and vegetables off. A good scrub will help remove traces of pesticides (if you don't buy organic) and any other residue on the produce. It's even a good idea to wash fruits that you peel (bananas, oranges, etc.) to avoid transfer of pesticides or bacteria.

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Any fitness buff or sports enthusiast will know what I mean when I say moisture-wicking fabrics have a stinky problem. Sure, they're wonderful when you're jogging or working out at the gym; they pull sweat away from your body instead of letting it cling to you like a cotton t-shirt does. But those moisture-wicking shirts and shorts and socks have a downfall... they are the pack rats of sweat.

The same problem holds true for many sports uniforms. I know my son's nylon soccer uniform can come out of the wash with all the grass stains removed, but sometimes there's a lingering aroma quite different than the spring-fresh aroma my laundry detergent touts.

There are plenty of options for getting your workout clothes or sports uniforms looking and smelling perfectly clean. Specialty sports detergents are designed for performance fabrics. And other laundry additives can boost the cleaning ability of your normal detergents. Check out the gallery for some ideas.

My son is 11. Part of the job description of being a pre-teen boy is to be dirty. Almost constantly dirty. When he's home for the summer, it's easy for me to remind him to wash his hands. But school is starting in a few short days and hand washing habits will become even more important.

Henry the Hand is a great site that makes hand washing a fun, simple activity for kids. It promotes some simple principles:

• Wash your hands whenever they're dirty and before eating
• Don't cough or sneeze into your hands
• Don't put dirty fingers near your eyes, nose, or mouth.

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Protect yourself in the outdoors, says The American Cancer Society (ACS) -- read all about it here -- and protect your picnic food too, say the cancer experts who are sending me an electronic monthly newsletter all about healthy living.

Warm weather poses a big threat of food-borne illness, according to the ACS. So: Keep bacteria away at your next outdoor feast with these five easy steps.

• Wash your hands before cooking and again after cooking, especially after touching raw meat. If you aren't near a faucet, grab a wet napkin or hand sanitizer -- they'll reduce the number of germs on your hands.

• Keep hot food hot. Hamburgers, hot dogs, and chicken should be kept at 140 degrees F or warmer.

• Keep cold foods cold. Even if you've got your food packed in a cooler, tuck it in a shady area. Keep at 41 degrees F or cooler.

• Wash melons before cutting them. This way, less bacteria will slip into the flesh from the rind when you slice them.

• Bring extra plates to cut down on cross-contamination. Use some to handle raw foods and others to handle cooked foods.

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My five year old daughter's beautiful light blond hair has turned the most not-so-beautiful shade of green. Ugh! We swim a lot. We live in Florida, and that's what we do almost every day during the summer. Her hair has been pretty green for about two weeks now, and for about the same amount of time I've been looking for the special swimming shampoo that's supposed to get the green out. I checked three pharmacies, one Walmart, and two grocery stores with no success. How frustrating!

Fortunately, today I stumbled across the ultimate score in 'get the green out' shampoos at Target.. Suave has a cute little kids line of hair and body products that are tear-free, smell great, and sell for less than two dollars. And! They've recently added a special shampoo to the line which is designed to remove chlorine from cute little heads of green hair. It's called Suave Swim and Sport Flippin' Citrus 2 in 1 Shampoo for Kids. We've already used it, and we love it! So....if you are Going Green in a way that has nothing to do with the environment......give this stuff a try!

Because they spend most of their time on the floor, exercise mats are rarely cleaned as often as they should be -- when is the last time you gave yours more than just a good shake on the back step? It's probably due for a scrub!

Lightly soiled
Make a solution of four drops of dish soap to two cups of water and wash dirty areas with a spray bottle, cloth, or sponge. Rinse with plain water and air dry.

Heavily soiled
Submerge the mat in warm water with just a touch of mild detergent (using too much could leave the mat slippery and dangerous in the future). Hand wash, rinse in plain water, and hang to air dry. If squeezing doesn't get enough water out of the mat, try rolling it up with a towel and stepping on it before separating the two and hanging the mat to dry.

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My first grade kid brings home a folder full of completed worksheets every Monday. Some of his work I toss. There is so much of it. And some of it I save. I can't wait to pull out his handwriting samples when he's a teenager.

One crumpled-up piece of paper came home with my seven-year-old yesterday, and I'm definitely throwing it in the "Joey's First Grade" box I have stuffed in a hallway linen closet. It's all about health -- Joey wrote out seven good health habits -- and so that makes it a keeper. Here are Joey's tips for good health:

1. Take a bath
2. Drink water
3. Exercise
4. Get plenty of sleep
5. Eat healthy foods
6. Keep cuts clean
7. Bruch (he meant brush) your teeth

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Whether there is a science behind kissing or if it is merely a learned behavior remains unknown. Nevertheless, there is an actual science of kissing, which is known as philematology. And while these lip-lock scientists attempt to make sense of the act of kissing, London researchers are finding reasons why it's actually a safer way of greeting someone.

According to scientists at the London School of Hygiene, you're more likely to pass along germs and infection by shaking someone's hand than you are by kissing them. Because some people do not properly wash their hands -- which also tend to be the part of the body that is used to touch, carry, or move items (some of which may contain bacteria) -- it's more likely to carry germs on them than it is the mouth.

I'm not saying that you should go and make out with the next person you meet, but this whole issue does point to the importance of hand hygiene in breaking the chain of infection.

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Here's some interesting news I learned from The Beauty Brains: Dirty hair might save the environment. Ok, maybe that's stretching it a bit, but dirty hair is at least good for the environment because it absorbs ozone from the air. In fact, dirty hair absorbs seven times as much ozone as clean hair does. And according to scientists, this can help cut the amount of harmful ozone floating around your head. Surprising? I think so.

But, as the brains are quick to point out, this isn't going to save the world or anything. In fact, the ozone in the air can interact with oil in dirty hair to produce other harmful chemicals. Still, washing your hair too often will waste water. Instead? Try to find a balance. Or, just shave your head.

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I tend to think that moderation is the best way to go when it comes to most things, including alcohol consumption. However, I'd be a liar if I said I always followed my own rule. We all overindulge from time to time -- sometimes it can be easy to get carried away when you're having a good time. Despite the resulting hangovers, life goes on and we all have to pay for our overindulging.

If you find yourself in a situation where you've woken up with a raging headache, nausea, red eyes (etc) and don't have the luxury of laying around all day recovering in front of the TV, here are some tips from AOL's All About You on how to look good if you're hungover but still have to go about your daily life.

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Calling all yogis -- Fitsugar has some great suggestions on on yoga mat etiquette. When was the last time you washed your mat? I'm embarrassed to think about how many times I've practiced on mine compared to how many times I've cleaned it. And I never wash my feet before staring my poses. Here are some mat tips, whether you're borrowing or using your own:

• Let your mat air-dry every now and then -- otherwise it's can breed bacteria
• Wash your feet before using your mat -- even if you've been wearing socks, chances are your feet still aren't very fresh.
• Don't step on anyone else's mat -- even if you're just passing through
• Don't use spray to disguise any funny smells on your mat -- wash it!

How do you take care of your yoga mat?

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I think one of the best inventions of all time (except the wheel, maybe) is indoor plumbing. It allowed our standards of cleanliness and hygiene to improve tremendously and had an enormous impact on the health of our society. But how much do you really know about personal hygiene? Did you know that toothbrushing didn't become routine in this country until it was enforced for soldiers in WWII? That NASA recently spent $23.4 million dollars designing a toilet that would work in zero-gravity space? Or that certain monks in India are forbidden to ever wash anything other than their hands and feet?

And that's just the start, read this list of 20 things you didn't know about hygiene and see how much you really didn't know.

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We're getting pretty conscious of what good disease and infection control means in this country, what with instant hand sanitizers, toilet seat covers, and signs reminding us to wash our hands in public bathrooms. But somehow all that great effort flies right out the window when it comes to petting zoos, where the majority of safety precautions to limit people's exposure to organisms like E. coli, salmonella, cryptosporidium, and campylobacter are frequently not followed. The simplest of interventions, like washing hands when leaving the petting zoo, were not done by people as often as 77% of the time in a recent survey.

Now that you know there's no excuses: wash your hands! And save the snacks and drinks for later.

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The age-old adage of washing up before dinner has some strong implications when you consider how much bacteria could be hitching a ride on dirty hands. All kinds of nasty illnesses can result from improper hygiene. Way back when before everyone had fancy antibacterial cleaners, soap got the job done. But now that we can simply rub on a hand gel or spray a surface, it begs the question: are we really choosing the right weapon against bacteria?

Microbiologists are beginning to think that antibacterial products don't quite clean as well as traditional methods. In fact, they could be doing more harm than good! These cleaners leave behind residue that can help build resistant bacteria, whereas soap and water do not. Why is this? It's due to the fact that antibacterial products don't kill everything, and the strains of bacteria left over become even stronger.

After the bacteria become tolerant of these cleaners, cross-resistance is possible. This means they start putting up all kinds of defenses, including protection against other things like antibiotics. One example they discovered was for a compound found in many hand and wash cleaners. Prolonged exposure to this common antibacterial cleaner caused mutations in the bacteria. Not only did they become stronger, but they somehow built a resistance to an antibiotic used to treat tuberculosis. While this has only been shown in labs, the potential is there in the home. If you're a healthy individual, experts suggest sticking with soap. However some people with lesser immune systems may have to rely on antibacterial products.

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