Recently in Safety Category

The recall of peanut products because of possible salmonella contamination has mushroomed into one of the largest.

The outbreak -- blamed on a company that produces only about 1 percent of the nation's peanut products -- has sickened at least 575 people in 43 states. At least eight have died. More than 1,300 foods that used ingredients from Peanut Corp. of America's peanut processing plant in Blakely, Ga., have been recalled. While the outbreak appears to be slowing down, new illnesses are still being reported.

You can check to see if you have any of the recalled peanut products on the U.S. Food and Drug Administration Web site, where you can search by brand name, UPC code or product description.

Depending on how recalls are measured, few others come close. If counted by the number of products, more than 1,313 had been recalled as of Thursday.

The closest is the 1,177 pet food products recalled in 2007 after melamine was discovered in some ingredients.

If measured in pounds, the February 2008 recall of beef from a California packaging plant would top the list, with 143 million pounds affected.

Here's a breakdown of recent national food contaminations that triggered recalls and warnings to consumers:

January 2009: Peanuts, peanut paste, peanut butter. 1,313 products recalled for salmonella contamination. More than 575 illnesses and eight deaths reported.

June 2008: Tomatoes and raw jalapeno peppers. More than $100 million in crops affected because of salmonella contamination. More than 1,200 illnesses reported and no deaths.

February 2008: Beef. More than 143 million pounds affected after unfit, weak and sick cattle were slaughtered for human consumption. No illnesses or deaths reported.

March 2007: Pet food. 1,177 products recalled because of melamine contamination. No human illnesses or deaths reported, but more than 14,000 pet illnesses and 16 deaths.

September 2006: Spinach. More than $86 million in crops affected because of E. coli contamination. More than 200 illnesses and three deaths reported.

The first signs of the recent salmonella outbreak were detected in November by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. But disease detectives initially were puzzled because some people who had gotten sick reported eating chicken, a common source of salmonella infections.

On Jan. 7 and 8, after discussions between federal and Minnesota authorities, the focus on peanut butter got stronger. On Jan. 8, the FDA visited an Ohio distributor for Peanut Corp. of America.

The next day federal inspectors were at the company's Blakely, Ga. facility, which ultimately was identified as the source of the food poisoning. That same day, Jan. 9, Minnesota health officials found salmonella in an open container of peanut butter made at the plant. On Jan. 10, Minnesota made a positive match to the salmonella strain that caused the outbreak.

Health officials are urging the public to get flu shots or the FluMist nasal spray vaccine to protect themselves during the flu season, which can last until spring, according to news services.

Flu activity across the nation is low right now, according to Google Flu Trends, which uses aggregated Google search data to estimate flu activity in your state.

It shows the strongest flu presence on the southeast coast of the U.S., though activity there is still only moderate.

But you should still get that shot.

"Many people mistakenly believe that there is no benefit to getting a flu vaccine after November," said Dr. Jonathan E. Fielding, Los Angeles County's Director of Public Health.

"In fact, influenza activity does not often peak until after the start of the new year and can continue through March, so vaccinations received in December provide protection at the time when people are most likely to catch the flu."

Fielding said free vaccines continue to be offered through public clinics for those who do not have a regular doctor or insurance. Learn more at the Web site of the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health.

Despite new safety standards, toys with choking hazards and high levels of toxic chemicals, such as lead, remain on store shelves this holiday season.

While federal legislation passed in August gives the Consumer Product Safety Commission more tools to regulate chemicals in toys, the law won't take effect until February.

The commission recently said manufacturers can sell toys containing some chemicals until the inventory runs out.

Given that, "We may need to watch out for years to come," said David Kosmos, a consumer advocate for the nonprofit Washington Public Interest Research Group.

Check on the toys you're bringing home at www.toysafety.net.

You can also get information on recalls and sign up for e-mail notifications about recalls at the CPSC's Web site.

Kids always want to do want grown-ups do, but news stories remind us that Facebook and MySpace aren't the safest playgrounds. But then there's KidZui.com, which, according to chairman and CEO Cliff Boro, incorporates "the best aspects of MySpace and Facebook ... in a way that works for kids" -- and for their parents.

To satisfy the kids, the site's features include customizable "Zui" avatars, a live feed that keeps them connected with friends and lets them chat and share content from
1.5 million kid-appropriate sites.

To satisfy the parents, all friend requests require parental approval from both sides, the content categories available to each child can be changed and reports on your child's recent searches and interests are generated weekly. Membership is free.

And for both the kids and the parents, the site also includes the Homework Helper, which matches Web pages, photos and videos to grades from kindergarten through eighth grade to help kids find resources related to their subjects of study.

Like their parents and older siblings on Facebook and MySpace, kids on KidZui can "befriend" John McCain, Barack Obama, Joe Biden and Sarah Palin, who each have KidZui profile pages. And future political experts can analyze the "befriending" results at www.kidzui.com/election2008.

Kids can also keep their friends up to date on their every move and mood, whether it's "moody" and "doing homework" or "energetic" and "by the pool."

Move over, Phillip Marlowe.

It used to be that only a well-connected private eye could dig up the dirt on a suspicious neighbor, a potential employee or that beautiful woman you met at the grocery store and asked to dinner.

But last month a Sacramento-based company started providing that information to the public, The New York Times reports.

Free and supported by ads, CriminalSearches.com claims to include criminal records for all 50 states directly from local courthouses. It has arrests and convictions for all types of crimes and -- in some areas -- even data on traffic violations.

You can even check out your entire neighborhood with a map that displays the addresses and names of those with arrests and convictions. E-mail alerts can notify you when someone in the area gets into trouble or a new person with a checkered past moves in.

The site surely provides what can often be a valuable public service, but it also sets up controversy. People's pasts are no longer their own secrets to spill or keep.

Pay sites like Intelius.com and PeopleScanner.com have offered the same information, but required a credit card number for access, which could have kept many from making inquiries.

A New York federal judge last week ordered Google to turn over records of which users have watched which videos on YouTube, which drew concerns from privacy advocates across the Internet.

Viacom is seeking the information to help build its copyright infringement lawsuit against Google. While it's too soon to tell what will happen as a result of the order, it presents an opportunity to remind everyone be wary of just what information they are making available online.

Most people probably know the basics -- don't click links included in unsolicited e-mails, don't let your children give out personal information to strangers online, and so on -- but there are plenty of other tips that will help you protect your privacy.

The Center for Democracy & Technology is an organization which "seeks practical solutions to enhance free expression and privacy in global communications technologies." A list of privacy protection tips from the center is available at: http://www.cdt.org/privacy/guide/basic/tips.phpl.

One tip is to have an e-mail account for personal use, and a separate account to use when filling out forms online. If you have a Gmail account, you can use the + sign to create an extended email address (such as your.name+spam@gmail.com) that you can give to Web sites. Their messages will appear in your normal inbox, and if you're starting to receive unsolicited spam you'll know exactly where it came from. Just set up a filter and it's gone.

If you would like to stay current on the latest online privacy news, visit the Electronic Privacy Information Center.

The Web site also has a list of practical privacy tools: http://epic.org/privacy/tools.html.

Included are well over 100 links to secure e-mail providers, HTML filters, secure instant messaging programs and Web and file encryption tools.

Both CDT and EPIC also have news pages that will keep you up-to-date on privacy policies and standards as they continue to change.

For a collection of links to current privacy policies for some companies, as well as other information, visit http://www.privacyexchange.org/buscodes/index.html.

Here's a list including all things Fourth of July -- fun facts, fireworks and barbecue safety tips and more from the U.S. Government's official Web portal. Some of the standout links are:

• Reminders on barbecue safety from the Agriculture Department

• A virtual visit to the Liberty Bell Center

• Have your children test their knowledge on the Declaration of Independence with this quiz. This site also offers quizzes on life in the White House, First Ladies and even presidents' pets.

• All-American recipes, including a recipe for Laura Bush's Hot Chocolate.

• If you're interested in donating your time and effort for a patriotic cause, this link is a thorough compilation of donation projects, volunteering opportunities and other ways to support your country.

Be safe and have a great Fourth!

Heal the Bay has a new initiative to raise awareness of water quality conditions. Ads went up on South Bay lifeguard stations to inform beachgoers to text their location and find out the Heal the Bay grade for the water. To receive text messages about South Bay beach water quality, send a text message to 23907 and type the following codes for these specific locations.
For Marina del Rey, Mothers' Beach, text mdrmothers
For Dockweiler State Beach at Ballona Creek, text ballona
For Manhattan Beach at 40th Street, text mb40
For Hermosa Beach Pier, text hermosapier
For Herondo Street storm drain, text herondo
For Redondo Beach at Avenue I drain, text avenuei
For Malaga Cove, Palos Verdes Estates, text malagad
For Palos Verdes Estates, text bluffcove
For Rancho Palos Verdes, text longpoint
For Cabrillo Beach's harborside at lifeguard tower. text cabrillo

More locations are available at the Heal the Bay website.

Torrance residents heading out on vacation may want to swing by the City of Torrance Web site first, where they can request that police keep an extra eye on things while they're away.

Besides the usual contact information, the vacation security check form asks such things as whether you plan to leave lights on, who is authorized to be there while you are gone (gardeners, maids, pool people, etc.), and whether cars will be parked in the driveway.

The police department makes no guarantee that vacation checks will be done daily, and it does not assume any liability for loss or damage to your property during your vacation if you do fill out the form.

While at the site, safety-conscious residents might also want to check out other entries on the Crimes, Trends & Prevention page, including one on why there is a rash of catalytic converter thefts and steps you can take to reduce the chances yours will be stolen, another on how to tell if a solicitor is genuine or a possible thief casing your house, and suggestions for preventing identity theft.