What's Lurking in Your Kitchen?( FORT WAYNE Ind. Aug...),Health

FORT WAYNE, Ind., Aug. 5 /PRNewswire/ -- Exactly how clean is your kitchen? Not as immaculate as you might imagine says the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). According to the CDC, while surfaces may look clean, many infectious germs may be lurking around(i). A regular cleaning schedule helps protect your kitchen from lurking grunge that can cause odors and harbor disease, says "Healthy Housekeeper" Laura Dellutri. She also recommends paying special attention to both the obvious and not-so-obvious spots in the room - like your garbage disposer, a big contributor to your sink's secret grime.

"Neglecting to clean kitchen appliances is not only unhygienic, it's unhealthy" says Dellutri, who authored Speed Cleaning 101 (Meredith Books, 2005) and The Overworked Mom's Stress Free Homekeeping (Morris Publishing Inc, 2008). "We all need to get in the habit of not just cleaning visible places like countertops, sinks and floors, but also disinfecting out-of-sight areas like the sink's garbage disposer and the microwave."

Dellutri's tips for helping maintain a healthy kitchen include:

• Suspect Kitchen Sinks: Disinfecting the sink after washing meats, fruits and vegetables will help prevent germs and bacteria from multiplying on sink surfaces and help avoid cross contamination in the room. All you need is chlorine bleach, water and a soft cloth. Dilute the bleach with water and wipe the sink with cloth dipped in the solution. Rinse immediately and wipe dry with a soft cloth. If the sink looks dull or cloudy, wipe it with a soft cloth moistened with undiluted white vinegar.
• Disease-Ridden Disposers: Garbage disposers typically serve as an exit for fresh and left-over foods, but without proper cleansing they can create odors and house organisms that may cause illness and disease such as pneumonia, bronchitis
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