Is it really necessary to wash salad leaves?

[Bill HH]

My granddad would just pull a carrot from the ground and give it to my sister and I to eat when we were kids. He would just give us anything to eat with out washing it.
As my nan use to say" you've got to eat a peck of dirt before you die" and I would say " yes but not all in one go"
I personally think we are far too 'clean' now a days.

My sentiments exactly, I am a great believer in challenging my immune system. The more hygienic we become the more vunerable we get. I do beleive in very careful treatment of raw meat etc and keeping meats at the correct temperature but home grown veg is not on my priority list. besides i grow a lot of Iceberg lettuce and part of its attraction is eating large wedges of it, if i broke up each individual leaves the crunch effect would be lost. of course any noticable holes are investigated and the outer leaves are discarded. i often eat carrots staight from the ground after a brief wipe on my T shirt.
It is well know that abroad salad is more likely to contain dangerous diseases than cooked food because it may well have been washed in sewer laden river water, but as we have no sewer laden river water in my garden I take the risk.
Health and safety has past the point of riduleoudness, when we ran a care home we had to have a listeria report done (£300) He condemned my pond fountain as being a possible threat. He couldnt explain why Torquay sea front has dozens of fountains and not a dead tourist in sight.

[Penellype]

Wholeheartedly agree that many people today are thoroughly obsessed with unnecessary cleanliness. However, as someone who was told that slight damage to my retinas had at some time in the past been caused by leptospirosis as a result of me probably rubbing my eyes with hands that had been near cat poo, I am very aware of the dangers. The comment arose because I asked if I had mild cataract in my eye because my vision appeared fuzzy in places.

[sequoia]

I find that washed and well spun fridged leaves,crisps them and takes a dressing better,I like to prepare in advance,it don`t make them taste any different but you may get more crunch bite to the recipe you are doing!

[MrsKirchin]

After bunging a load of baby leaf salad into my tortilla wrap, then discovering a rather large caterpillar complete with masses of caterpillar poo in the punnet as I was about to grab some more, yes, I wash my salad leaves now!

[alldigging]

Wholeheartedly agree that many people today are thoroughly obsessed with unnecessary cleanliness. However, as someone who was told that slight damage to my retinas had at some time in the past been caused by leptospirosis as a result of me probably rubbing my eyes with hands that had been near cat poo, I am very aware of the dangers. The comment arose because I asked if I had mild cataract in my eye because my vision appeared fuzzy in places.

Told by who?

[Penellype]

By my optician.

[Alison]

By my optician.

Unusual, it's water borne and usually spread in rats wee (had many briefings about it when I worked in sewers) and you'd really know if you had it. We were issued with special cards to say we'd been in contact with the contents of sewers so that if we started getting flu like symptoms we could fast track treatment as it can easily be fatal and you'd certainly know you'd got it . That said, there are plenty of potential nasties in cat poo.

[Scarlet]

I find that washed and well spun fridged leaves,crisps them and takes a dressing better,I like to prepare in advance,it don`t make them taste any different but you may get more crunch bite to the recipe you are doing!

Even better if they've been washed in iced water..

[Penellype]

Unusual, it's water borne and usually spread in rats wee (had many briefings about it when I worked in sewers) and you'd really know if you had it. We were issued with special cards to say we'd been in contact with the contents of sewers so that if we started getting flu like symptoms we could fast track treatment as it can easily be fatal and you'd certainly know you'd got it . That said, there are plenty of potential nasties in cat poo.

That serves me right for relying on my memory when I'm snowed under at work and tired! Been dealing with rats at the farm and got the diseases mixed up. The one I mean is toxoplasmosis, which affects eyesight, the commonest source being cat poo.

Toxoplasmic chorioretinitis - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Sorry for incorrect info.

[Alison]

That serves me right for relying on my memory when I'm snowed under at work and tired! Been dealing with rats at the farm and got the diseases mixed up. The one I mean is toxoplasmosis, which affects eyesight, the commonest source being cat poo.

Toxoplasmic chorioretinitis - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Sorry for incorrect info.

That makes more sense, sounds nasty, hope the damage isn't too bad.

[meteor]

Health and safety has past the point of riduleoudness, when we ran a care home we had to have a listeria report done (£300) He condemned my pond fountain as being a possible threat. He couldnt explain why Torquay sea front has dozens of fountains and not a dead tourist in sight.

Oh I would loved to been there to see him squirm out of that. Ha!

I'm constantly foraging and munching as I work in my plot. I don't think a radish has ever made to my kitchen, if I feel there is too much soil on carrots etc and quick swish from the garden hose first. A salad spinner is the answer to soggy lettuce.

[Jay22]

Yip washed and in the salad spinner for me. Son has a friend who is a chef who always washes things like salad leaves,kale etc in salt water as that also kills any eggs there may be on the leaves. Yuk, as soon as that was mentioned I have always done that...never used to though and I'm still here!

[Two_Sheds]

I hate the leaves getting soggy.

so do I, so I always use my salad spinner to dry them off


My salad, cabbage, kale etc all needs washing in salty water to remove inevitable caterpillars, slugs and their frass