Can You Get Sick From Eating Bad Cheese

Can You Get Sick From Eating Bad Cheese

You can get sick from eating bad cheese. Cheese is a dairy product made from milk, and milk can go bad if it’s not properly refrigerated. When milk goes bad, it can cause food poisoning, and eating bad cheese can give you the same symptoms as food poisoning: nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea.

Besides some abdominal cramps, you might find you experience no symptoms whatsoever after eating cheesy cheese. If, however, you do find yourself vomiting, experiencing loose stool, or notice any other unpleasant symptoms after eating bad cheese, you might want to consider skipping meals for several hours, and then following it with something dry and plain — like toast, rice, or crackers — until you are able to get your stomach settled.

Never keep eating cheese that makes you ill, even if it seems fine from a flavor and texture standpoint. If your cheese seems fresh and tastes fine, be sure it is really the cheese that is making you ill, and not something else. Make sure, though, it is not just you; sometimes sickness and pregnancy can distort your sense of smell, making the cheese smell like something it really is not.

Since cheese is a dairy product, the acidic odor that cheese produces as it goes rotten helps you to tell when it is time to toss the cheese. If mold has not shown up, then that off-putting odor from the shredded cheese may be a sign you should stay clear. When you encounter cheese that has been sitting around for some time, there is a good chance it may have developed mold.

	Facts
Side Effect	Eating cheese that is rotten or has other expired may eventually develop digestive issues from eating bad cheese
Best Way	The best way to store such cheese is by wrapping it loosely first with waxed paper to allow it to breathe.

Mold can grow anywhere, but usually shows up on cheese stored in warmer places like fridges and freezers. Mold may spread widely on softer foods, spoiling even parts that seem fine, whereas it can be more localized on denser, harder foods, like Parmesan. Mold usually cannot get very deep in harder, semisoft cheeses, such as Cheddar, Colby, Parmesan, and Swiss.

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This is because mold cannot get very deep inside a hard and semisoft piece of cheese, so mold-free portions of the cheese are immune from mold contamination. Once you have cut the moldy part off the cheese, check again to ensure the rest of the cheese is mold-free. If you find mold on hard cheese, it is usually safe to cut off the moldy part and eat the rest, as spores probably have not spread through the cheese.

If your cheese is a hard or semi-soft, such as Cheddar, Parmesan, or Swiss, you can probably eat the moldy part without harm, says Darin Detwiler. According to nutritionist Catherine Zeratsky, soft moldy cheeses and slices, shreds, or crumbles should be discarded, whereas hard and semi-soft cheeses are fine to eat if you have cut off the moldy portion for at least 1 inch around and under the moldy area. People can still eat moldy hard cheeses as long as they cut off at least 2.5 centimeters around and below the moldy spots.

You can still have gastrointestinal problems after eating moldy cheese, but it will depend on how much mold you consumed. Keep in mind, you cannot necessarily see all of the mold infecting your cheese (or any food). It is safe to eat cheese with surface mold on it, if you clean off any mold prior to eating your cheese.

This is a sign that the cheese is completely contaminated, and it should be avoided to avoid any type of gastrointestinal discomfort. Soft, grated, cut, or crumbled cheese that has been contaminated with mold should be discarded because the mold can be spreading with the harmful bacteria that causes food poisoning. Even if a small amount of mold has grown, eating expired cheeses may be safe if you remove molds and they still smell fine. If you are unsure of the kind of cheese you have, or what to do if mold grows, your safest bet is to throw it out.

It is worth noting here that some types of cheeses deliberately add mold to promote ripeness, and eating those types of cheeses is safe. This can be a confusing subject when talking about cheese, as there are many cheeses made using molds one way or the other. Cheeses can turn sour for many reasons, like improper storage, contamination, or growth of mold. Cottage cheese can be contaminated at any time in cottage cheese production, or through improper handling of food.

The cheese also may get infected if you do not wash your hands or utensils well, or if the cheese touches surfaces that are contaminated. Symptoms of eating contaminated cottage cheese develop four to 36 hours after eating the cheese. Seeing as cheeses may trigger food poisoning, precautions must be taken when handling it in order to avoid this unwelcome and deadly disease. Bad cheese may contain Salmonella, Listeria, E.coli, and Brucella, and if you consume such cheese, then it may lead to a number of foodborne illnesses, particularly food poisoning, characterized by nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, abdominal cramps, and fever.

Cheese is a great source of protein and calcium, but if not stored correctly, it can quickly spoil. Cheese made from unpasteurized milk contains harmful disease-causing pathogens, which can cause food poisoning. This means cheese made from pasteurized milk is not completely safe, particularly if it is handled improperly and is left to sit in a dirty post-pasteurization environment, causing food contamination and food poisoning. Harmful bacteria in raw milk and milk products, including soft cheeses and yogurt, can be destroyed by the process of pasteurization.

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When it comes to the block of cheese, so, with soft cheeses such as feta, cottage cheese, and others, you would have to throw out the entire cheese if you find mold or any other organic growth on it, as the mold could quickly get into the cheese. In case of harder cheeses like Parmesan, you can keep them in freezer to extend their shelf life, whereas in the case of soft cheeses like Camembert or Feta, freezing is not recommended. There is no need to panic, unless you are eating an entire wedge of cheese that is heavily coated with green mucilage (and if so, then you might want to investigate some other issues), it is highly unlikely that you will be ill from cheese that has some mild mould on it. If the slightest bit of cheese makes your tongue, lips, or cheeks tingle or burn, then that cheese is not good (even if it passes the looks-and-smells test).

Can you cook spoiled cheese?

It is not advised to bake rotten cheese at a high temperature to remove the mold. For flavorful and comforting meals, feel free to bake purposefully rotten cheeses like gorgonzola or brie, but baking won’t help if your cheese isn’t supposed to be moldy.

Can I eat cheese that smells bad?

Since the mold spores are probably not likely to have spread throughout the cheese, it is usually safe to chop off the moldy portion of hard cheese and consume the rest. A cheese that smells or tastes like spoilt, sour milk is another indication that it has gone bad.

Can you get sick from eating old cheese?

You might not like the flavor or feel queasy while eating the old cheese.  You could get a mild allergic response, get sick from eating, or experience breathing problems. In the worst situation, you can end up in the hospital, need dialysis, or possibly pass away.