Are Foods Pasteurized in Italy?

Old Jul 10th, 2001, 06:27 AM
  #1  
cleo
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Are Foods Pasteurized in Italy?

I've been told that the food is not pasteurized in Italy. How can I find out if this is true?
 
Old Jul 10th, 2001, 08:46 AM
  #2  
PB
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I find this a rather odd question, but here goes... most of the milk, some cheeses and some fruit juices are pasteurized.

PB
 
Old Jul 10th, 2001, 08:50 AM
  #3  
Ed
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I'm unsure of the question at the heart of the matter here. Most foods in the US aren't pasteurized. The same is true in Italy.

Italy, and the other Western European nations have a public health standard at least as high as the US in general, higher in many cases.

Perhaps you could raise specific questions which could more easily be addressed?

twenj
 
Old Jul 10th, 2001, 11:02 AM
  #4  
Linda
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Pasteurized lettuce just isn't the same.
 
Old Jul 10th, 2001, 11:19 AM
  #5  
elvira
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And pasteurized truffles lose a little of their zip.
 
Old Jul 10th, 2001, 11:46 AM
  #6  
what do
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It is a very ODD question. Even a bit condescending...

Not pasteurizing must be the reason that Italy has a longer life expectancy than the US.... sheesh...

Sorry, its just that I get really sick of people who worry about getting sick when traveling...
 
Old Jul 10th, 2001, 01:40 PM
  #7  
Mrs. Nice
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I admit this is a strange question, one that I annot answer either. However, I must comment to "what do you mean", were you born rude or does the anonyminity of this board bring it out in you? Please don't beat other people up. By the way worrying about getting sick in another country, is not crazy. It happened to me twice. 1) Cancun and the water, need I say more? I had to be teated for bacteria in my digestive system for 1 month after returning! 2) my husband cut himself on a piece of broken glass in costa Rica. We had to go to an ER to have it sewn up and get a tetnus shot. We weren't necessarily worried about the level of medical care there (maybe we should have been). The problem was we had hospital bills which our very American health insurance would not pay! Lesson learned: be extra careful when out of the country because medical treatment isn't as accessible and probably not covered by your insurance. Also while Italy does have very high safety standards like the US, food and water will NOT be the same. It is "safe" but the differences may upset your system anyway if it is very sensitive!
 
Old Jul 10th, 2001, 01:51 PM
  #8  
xxx
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Sorry Mrs. Nice ... you are not. The question may have been asked innocently, but it is, nonetheless, condescending.

And you mean to tell me you went to a country that allows broken glass to lie about? My, my.
 
Old Jul 10th, 2001, 01:52 PM
  #9  
what do
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I was looking at the clock and wondering how long it would take before someone would accuse me of being rude and/or obnoxious and/or unsensitive. It was longer than I expected but not as long as I hoped...

For a second, let's suppose that the answer to the question of whether food is pasteurized is "NO". Would that change cleo's attitude towards going to Italy??? If it does, I would urge her to stay home. She should not travel abroad.

Americans (like it or not) DO tend to take a very exasperating patronizing attitude towards the rest of the world. IMHO, questions like this reflect this patronizing attitude. "will I be safe here... will I be safe there... can I eat this, can I eat that...what should I wear here...what should I wear there...how is the weather, the toilet paper... can I find A/C in the UK, can I find Coca Cola and Apple Pie in Greece...I cannot live without Survivor where can I see it..."

You get the idea...

BTW, no more posts from me on this thread.

BTW2, you condemn anonimity, so your real name is "Mrs. Nice"?
 
Old Jul 10th, 2001, 01:58 PM
  #10  
X
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I don't see the original post as condesending. She simply asked whether food is pasteurized. She never says anything about how horrible it would be if it weren't. For all we know she prefers non-pasteurized! She in no way says anything derrogatory about Italy. Also I agree with Mrs. Nice, its not silly to worry about getting sick in a foreign country and no I do not drink the water in Italy!
 
Old Jul 10th, 2001, 02:08 PM
  #11  
Mrs. Nice
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I do not condemn anonyminity, I asked whether the fact that we can be anonymous on this board (as I am) allowed you to feel free to be rude as well since no one knows who you are. I agree some people do obscess and go overboard sometimes IMO but lets not lump all americans together. I too have fears about my health and safety and so far I have never let it stop me from experiencing the world (travel is my passion) BTW everyone likes the comforts of home while away this is not an "american only" trait. Lets just try to answer posts nicely and if we can't then don't answer that thread and just skip over it! As for the incident in Costa Rica, my husband broke the glass in our hotel room and thought he had picked up all the pieces, evidently not!
 
Old Jul 10th, 2001, 02:27 PM
  #12  
Mika
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Do you know, what pasteurizing means? - heating food to 70° centigrade - try doing this to fruit or salad, you nearly cook it.
 
Old Jul 10th, 2001, 02:31 PM
  #13  
FYI
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Pasteurization can mean many things to many people - particularly those suffering some IBS.
 
Old Jul 10th, 2001, 02:45 PM
  #14  
uninsured
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Please God if I get sick , let it be in Italy or France, they have a higher standard of health care than the US and it's available to ANYONE!
 
Old Jul 10th, 2001, 03:32 PM
  #15  
wanderer
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uninsured. you are very wrong about the standard of health care being higher in italy than in the us. many of the hospitals are primative compared to the standards in the us. yopu may have better access but do not asssume the care is better
 
Old Jul 10th, 2001, 03:35 PM
  #16  
Ed
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Uninsured:

Are you sure you want to get sick in the EU? Are you sure medical care is avaialable to anyone? Including non-EU residents? That's not my understanding.

Despite the occasional anecdote of being treated, unofficially and off the books, for free, I don't think US residents should assume if they become ill in Europe they'll be treated for free. Nor will European services recognize American insurance policies.

 
Old Jul 10th, 2001, 03:53 PM
  #17  
scigirl
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Many soft cheeses (like Brie, I think) aren't pasteurized - and this can be a problem when traveling in countries without consistent refridgeration. Italy, however, is not one of those countries. Most juice (as in the US some natural juices are not pasturized) and milk in developed countries are pasturized.

I don't think this is a condescending question. I recently returned from China where it is a concern to make sure that foods are safe for western GI systems. Nothing could ruin a vacation faster than having to stay within 100 meters of a bathroom. If Cleo has never been to Italy why would she know automatically what Italy is like? She is asking a question to clarify a piece of information - nothing wrong with that. Honestly, before I read up on Italy prior to a trip I had wondered about the safety of the water, etc. - that is just normal travler's caution not condescention. BTW, in China you are advised by travel books to eat only pasturized cheese, avoid ice cream in rural areas or from street vendors, can not drink the tap water, and not to eat unpeeled fruit or raw veggies. Not knowing these things could really cause problems.
 
Old Jul 10th, 2001, 05:02 PM
  #18  
StCirq
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You may not be treated for free, but you will certainly be treated - at least in Italy and France - and doctors will invariably give you papers you can take back to the USA and submit to your insurance company (which will often honor them). The UN rates health care throughout the world, and Italy and France are 1 and 2 in the rankings, whereas the USA is about 37, if my memory serves me right. I have found on numerous occasions visiting health care facilities in Italy and France that the care is far superior to that in the USA. My daughter has 23 stitches in her face - 8 stitched in the USA and the rest stitched in Italy (where we paid not a single lira for the emergency service or for followup visits to doctors). The 8 stitched in the USA will need plastic surgery. The ones stitched in Italy are invisible. I know this is just one anecdote - but it's one of many, many I could tell. Health care is superior, at least in France and Italy. And how we got here from pasteurization is a bit of a mystery.
 
Old Jul 10th, 2001, 05:12 PM
  #19  
uninsured
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According to the WHO and UN France and Italy rank #1 and 2, US is way down on the list, I think Stcirq is just about right at 37 and yes , it will be free and you will be presented with a bill to give your insurer and if they won't pay it is written off.
 
Old Jul 10th, 2001, 05:55 PM
  #20  
Kate
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Why be so critical about such a baseline question without knowing the issues surrounding why the question was posed? I have a 9-month-old (and a three-year-old)& am a frequent traveler. If I was pregnant & traveling, it would be a completely acceptable question to ask if foods were indeed Pasteurized...not odd at all but in fact smart. If I had any kind of disease where my immune system was somewhat compromised...it would be a normal question. Shame on those who were so quick to be critical & condescending.
 

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