Is it Safe to Eat?

Food Safety Through the Ages.- Food is Just One of Life's Risks.- Bacteria in Food - Good or Bad?.- Viruses.- Mad Cow Disease and the Elusive Prion.- Natural Toxins in Food.- Agrochemical Residues in Food.- Gender Bending Chemicals in Food.- Genetically Modified Food.- Is it Safe to Eat?.

Stories about BSE and avian flue may get the headlines, but it is really the ordinary risks we face every day when preparing and eating food that primarily determine how safe it is. "Is It Safe to Eat? clearly and carefully examines and clarifies the sometimes bewildering issues that we all can master so we can adjust our behavior to lead healthier, less anxiety-ridden lives. Noted food expert and author, Ian Shaw, also places the risks of food, food-born pathogens and food contaminants into the context of life s overall risks. Shaw makes the case that enjoyment of food and eating is a benefit that far outweighs the risks, at least if everyone is aware of those risks and takes sensible measures to minimize them. His easily understandable, passionate, yet authoritative and informative book helps you get a handle on the key issues such as GM food, cancer-causing agents and agrochemicals, natural toxins, BSE, E. coli, and more.

From the reviews:

"Ian Shaw's book draws to our attention some of the horrors lurking in seemingly harmless food. ... Shaw addresses many other food-related issues, including the role of prions in BSE-infected meat, xenoestrogens and declining sperm counts, food-borne bacteria and viruses, and the use of genetically modified food." (Dennis Rouvray, Chemistry World, Vol. 20(9), September, 2005)

"Does your perception of food risks closely mirror the real risks? ... The author Professor Ian Shaw, discusses these important issues and questions in his easily understandable, passionate, yet authoritative and informative book. ... Ian Shaw sets the risks of food, foodborne pathogens and food contaminants in the context of life's other risks." (Food Trade Review, Vol. 75, May, 2005)

"Professor Dr Ian Shaw candidly points out that food is just one of life's risks, and he admits that he hopes that, as readers, we will make up our own minds about risk. ... This is a most readable book, which helps us look beyond the headlines." (Susan Omar, Biologist, Vol. 53 (3), 2006)

"This book is an overview of food safety related to the personal experiences of the author. ... this book is recommended to everybody interested in food and food safety, culinary science or cooking, that means cooks, farmers, growers, bakers, food processors, professionals and students in food technology, food chemistry and biology; food information specialists, and also media professionals." (Advances in Food Science, Vol. 27 (4), 2005)

"This book provides a very good introduction to the safety of out food supply. ... The presentation is clear with an appropriate balance between biological and chemical risks. ... The book should be recommended reading for students in a wide range of courses. It is written in a style that is both readable and readily understood, so it should also appeal to and inform a much wider audience on a topic so prone to