Babies and young children are especially vulnerable to the bacteria that can cause food poisoning. Following a few simple guidelines will help keep them safe and healthy.Always wash your hands well before preparing food:

• Teach your children to wash their hands after touching pets and going to the toilet, and before eating.
• Keep surfaces clean and keep any pets away from food or surfaces where food is prepared.
• Keep chopping boards and utensils thoroughly clean.
• Keep cooked and raw meats covered and away from each other and from other foods in the fridge.
• Always wash your hands after touching raw meat.
• Thoroughly wash all bowls and spoons used for feeding in hot soapy water.
• Don't save and reuse foods that your child has half eaten.
• When reheating food, make sure it's piping hot all the way through then let it cool down before giving it to your child. If you're using a microwave, always stir the food and check the temperature before feeding it to your child. Don't reheat cooked food more than once.
• Cook all food thoroughly and cool it until lukewarm before giving it to your baby.
• Wash and peel fruit and vegetables such as apples and carrots.
• Avoid raw eggs, including uncooked cake mixture, homemade ice creams, mayonnaise or desserts that contain uncooked egg. Cook eggs until the yolk and the white are firm.
• Avoid shellfish.
• Don't give children food or drink when they're sitting on the potty.

Storing and reheating food
Cool food as quickly as possible (ideally within one to two hours) and put it in the fridge or freezer. Food placed in the fridge should be eaten within two days. Frozen food should be thoroughly defrosted before reheating. The safest way to do this is to leave it in the fridge overnight or use the defrost setting on a microwave.

Reheat food thoroughly so it is piping hot all the way through, but remember to let it cool down before giving it to your baby. To cool food quickly, put it in an airtight container and hold it under a cold running tap. Stir it from time to time so that it cools consistently all the way through.