Foodborne Illness Quiz for the ServSafe Food Handler Exam

Questions, answers (marked ✓) and explanations are below. For the interactive version, enable JavaScript.

1. Which of these is one of the 'Big 6' pathogens a food handler must report?

   • Influenza
   • Shigella
   • Tetanus
   • Athlete's foot

   The Big 6 are Norovirus, Hepatitis A, Shigella, Salmonella Typhi, nontyphoidal Salmonella and shiga toxin-producing E. coli. A diagnosis with any of them must be reported to the manager.

2. Norovirus is most often spread by:

   • Overcooked food
   • Infected food handlers who don't wash their hands after using the restroom
   • Refrigerated food
   • Dry storage

   Norovirus spreads by the fecal-oral route, usually from an infected worker's unwashed hands. Thorough handwashing and keeping sick staff out are the main defenses.

3. Salmonella is most commonly associated with:

   • Bread and crackers
   • Poultry and eggs
   • Canned soup
   • Bottled water

   Salmonella is strongly linked to poultry and eggs, which is why poultry cooks to 165°F and eggs need careful handling.

4. Which TWO groups are at higher risk of serious foodborne illness?

   • Older adults
   • Young children
   • Healthy teenagers
   • Trained athletes

   Older adults, young children, pregnant people and those with weakened immune systems fight off foodborne pathogens less effectively, so illness hits them harder.

5. Hepatitis A and Norovirus are best prevented by:

   • Cooking everything to 135°F
   • Good personal hygiene and excluding sick workers
   • Wiping counters more often
   • Wearing gloves without washing hands

   Both are carried in by infected people, not grown in food. Handwashing, no bare-hand contact with ready-to-eat food, and excluding ill workers stop them far better than surface cleaning.

6. A food handler with diarrhea should:

   • Keep working if they wear gloves
   • Report it to the manager and be restricted or excluded
   • Work only the register
   • Take medicine and continue prepping

   Diarrhea is a reportable symptom. The manager restricts or excludes the worker per local rules, a food handler with diarrhea must not work with exposed food.

7. Shiga toxin-producing E. coli (STEC) is most often linked to:

   • Undercooked ground beef
   • Cooked white rice
   • Fresh citrus
   • Bottled water

   STEC is classically linked to undercooked ground beef, which is exactly why ground beef must reach 155°F.

8. Which set of symptoms must a food handler report to their manager?

   • Dry skin and tiredness
   • Vomiting, diarrhea, jaundice, or sore throat with fever
   • A mild headache
   • Sore muscles after a shift

   Report vomiting, diarrhea, jaundice, and sore throat with fever. These point to conditions that can spread through food, so the manager applies the restriction or exclusion rules.