Top 10 Bad Refrigerator Habits That Can Harm Your Health

Unwashed foods and raw food packaging from markets or supermarkets often carry harmful bacteria. Storing these items directly in the fridge can spread bacteria to other foods. Additionally, not cleaning raw meat, fish, or seafood leads to contamination, resulting in unpleasant smells, slime, and spoilage. To ensure safety, always prepare raw food immediately before refrigerating it. For meats, fish, shrimp, squid, and bones, wash them thoroughly under running water, pat them dry with a paper towel, and place them in a tightly sealed container or food storage bag before storing in the freezer.

As for vegetables and fruits, avoid washing them before refrigeration. Washing them first can cause them to wilt or rot faster. Simply trim any damaged or old parts, place them in a sealed bag, and store them in the fridge. If you prefer to wash them beforehand, ensure they are completely dry before refrigerating. It's essential to thoroughly wash raw food before storing to avoid foodborne illnesses, as this practice prevents contamination and keeps your fridge hygienic. Always wash raw food, place it in a clean, sealed container, and refrigerate it immediately for your safety and the health of your family.

Many busy homemakers tend to do all their shopping in one go on weekends, filling both the fridge and freezer to capacity. However, to maintain proper cooling and preserve food quality, it's essential to leave some space in the fridge for air circulation. Without proper airflow, the fridge struggles to maintain a cold temperature, leading to constant motor activity, which wastes energy and can cause the appliance to break down. Additionally, improperly cooled food spoils faster. To check if your fridge is overloaded, feel the exterior or the back; if it's warm to the touch, you need to free up some space inside.

Stuffing too much food in the fridge restricts the cold air circulation, causing uneven temperatures. Some areas in the fridge could warm up, which accelerates spoilage. If your fridge is packed, it's best to lower the temperature and clean the fridge regularly—at least once a week—with hot water and disinfectant. For the section that holds raw meat, cleaning should be done every few days.

Most vegetables should be kept chilled before cooking. However, leafy greens like water spinach, amaranth, and swamp cabbage should not be washed before storing them in the fridge. These vegetables have a natural protective layer, which washing removes, causing them to spoil more quickly. For these types of vegetables, place them in a perforated plastic bag before storing them in the fridge. If the vegetables are particularly dirty, give them a light rinse, let them dry, and then store them. In general, leafy vegetables should be kept in either a plastic or paper bag in the fridge to prevent wilting. It's also important to note that you should not keep vegetables for longer than 4 days.

For root vegetables that still have dirt or fertilizer residue, bacteria on these could spread to other foods and harm your health. Therefore, don't forget to clean them before refrigerating. Raw vegetables, just like raw meats, can also carry bacteria and cause cross-contamination. In particular, soil-borne bacteria like E. coli can transfer to other foods in the fridge and lead to gastrointestinal issues. To ensure safety, cut off the roots, remove any remaining soil, wrap the vegetables in paper, and then store them in the vegetable compartment.

In our daily lives, we often use plastic containers, bottles, and other plastic items to store water and food. We commonly clean and reuse plastic bottles; however, proper cleaning is difficult, and even a small amount of bacteria left behind can multiply. According to numerous scientific studies, water stored in reused plastic bottles is highly prone to bacterial contamination and can negatively affect health. Long-term use of these plastic bottles can lead to digestive issues, circulatory problems, and even cancer if environmental conditions cause the plastic to break down.

Specifically, storing plastic bottles in low temperatures can release dioxins, which are harmful substances linked to cancer, birth defects, and developmental issues in children. Most plastic bottles will release dioxins when exposed to cold temperatures, which are toxic to health. Chemicals like bisphenol A (BPA) and phthalates are also dangerous, particularly for pregnant women and children. Therefore, it is best to replace plastic bottles with glass bottles or BPA-free polypropylene (PP) plastic containers, which are safe for health and widely available on the market.

Many people have the habit of storing most foods in the fridge to extend their shelf life, but they often overlook the potential dangers of improper storage. Potatoes are one food you should never store in the refrigerator. Certain foods can spoil or degrade when refrigerated, and potatoes are one of them. Potatoes contain starch, and when kept at low temperatures, this starch turns into sugar. When you fry or cook them, the sugar reacts with asparagine (an amino acid) at high temperatures, producing a harmful chemical compound called Acrylamide.

Acrylamide is a chemical used in dyes, plastics, and even found in cigarette smoke. Additionally, Acrylamide forms when frying foods like potatoes, and consuming too much of it can increase the risk of cancer. Potatoes can be stored at room temperature in paper bags for up to three weeks without needing refrigeration. Storing potatoes in the fridge not only diminishes their flavor and natural quality but also accelerates the rotting process. So instead of refrigerating potatoes, store them in a paper bag at room temperature to maintain their freshness and quality.

In reality, storing leftover rice for an extended period can lead to the production of toxins. The main ingredient in rice is starch, and when heated to 60°C, a process called "starch gelatinization" occurs, which can impact digestion. After some time, rice may develop a foul smell, commonly referred to as spoiled or sour rice. Additionally, uncooked rice can harbor Bacillus spores, a type of bacteria that can cause food poisoning. This bacteria is a major health threat, leading to symptoms like nausea and diarrhea.

These spores can survive and, if contaminated cooking utensils are used, they may transfer to the cooked rice. Storing the rice in the fridge can result in bacterial contamination of the refrigerator. To avoid food poisoning, it is best to cook only what you plan to eat. If you have leftovers, allow the rice to cool as quickly as possible (preferably within an hour) and store it in the fridge for no more than 24 hours. In fact, it’s best to avoid storing leftover rice in the fridge altogether.

The refrigerator is an essential kitchen appliance in every home. However, if you don't maintain and clean it regularly, unpleasant odors from food can linger and affect the freshness of other stored items. Failing to clean your fridge regularly allows dirt to accumulate, creating a breeding ground for harmful bacteria, which can pose health risks.

To prevent this, it's recommended to clean your refrigerator once a week using warm water and disinfectant. The meat compartment should be cleaned more frequently, ideally every few days. As an added tip, you can use lemon, lime, or grapefruit peels, or a solution of lemon juice to help neutralize odors and kill bacteria inside the fridge.

When the refrigerator door is not properly closed or remains open for too long, it can cause the fridge to lose its cooling efficiency, leading to spoiled food, beverages, and a rise in temperature. Reopening the door after it has been left open wastes time for the fridge to cool down again. Leaving the refrigerator door open too long or forgetting to close it can also damage the fridge, reduce its lifespan, and generate excessive noise. If you consistently forget to close the fridge door, it can affect the appliance's cooling system, reduce compressor life, and even block the cooling system entirely.

In rooms like bedrooms, where the fridge is located near the bed, an open door or improperly closed door can cause a cool draft, increasing the chances of catching a cold. Leaving the refrigerator door open for too long can also cause ice to melt and lead to rusting, further damaging the appliance. So, before opening the fridge, know exactly what you need, and avoid leaving the door open for too long. Once you’ve found what you need, be sure to close it immediately.

Leftover food, especially cooked meals, can spoil quickly if not properly covered when stored in the fridge. This not only affects the taste of the food but can also pose serious health risks. It’s best to use dedicated containers with secure lids and avoid cheap plastic products. Leaving leftover food uncovered allows bacteria to infiltrate, which can lead to foodborne illnesses. Additionally, exposing food to air in the fridge makes it susceptible to contamination from other items, spreading harmful bacteria and increasing the risk of diseases.

After meals, you may have some leftovers, but if you place them in the fridge without sealing them properly, bacteria can thrive. This is also a common cause of unpleasant odors in the fridge. To prevent this, store leftovers in a clean, sealed container with a lid or plastic wrap before placing them in the fridge. Additionally, modern refrigerators allow you to store food within 2 hours of cooking without waiting for it to cool down.

Many people mistakenly believe that cold temperatures can kill bacteria. According to Professor Humphrey of the Institute of Infection and Global Health at the University of Liverpool, frozen food slows down bacterial growth, allowing us to store food for a few days rather than just a few hours at room temperature. However, some bacteria continue to multiply in the fridge and could still lead to foodborne illnesses.

Furthermore, many households make the mistake of treating the fridge as just a storage space, placing both raw and cooked foods together without realizing that bacteria from one type of food can cross-contaminate the other. Some of these bacteria can cause dangerous diseases like hepatitis and dysentery, which can seriously harm your health. Therefore, you should separate raw and cooked foods, keeping them in different sections of the fridge.