Experts offer tips on how to avoid getting sick from your food

a Listeria outbreak Associated with peaches, peaches and nectarines, it sickened 11 people in seven states, and one person died, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that there are 48 million cases of foodborne illness in the United States each year.

For Megan Ellard, a case of food poisoning turned her into a cautious shopper.

“I got really sick. It was scary,” she told CBS News.

She said the experience made her “more anxious” about her grocery purchases. She now buys hydroponic lettuce — leaves grown in water rather than soil — from Tom’s Market in Warrenville, Illinois.

“I buy it because it is grown in a controlled environment,” she said. “I love it. There are no pesticides added. There aren’t a million people touching it and messing with it.”

Elarde used to buy packaged lettuce, which, along with other leafy greens, ranks high on Consumer Reports’ list of 10 dangerous foods recalled due to the number of illnesses, outbreaks and recalls they’ve been linked to.

“Packaged lettuce has gone through many steps before it gets to you,” Sanaa Megahed, a food microbiologist and director of food safety at Consumer Reports, told CBS News. “It’s grown in a field. It’s transported through a processing plant. It’s cut up and packed into bags. So, there are high chances of contamination.”

The same applies to cut fruit, so Mujahid advises buying whole fruit and cutting it yourself.

Cheese, deli meats, ground beef, onions, turkey, chicken, papaya, peaches, watermelon and flour are also on Consumer Reports’ list of dangerous foods.

If watermelon rind comes into contact with contaminated irrigation water, it can be transferred to the fruit when it is cut. Experts say that cutting and producing onions should be avoided because bacteria can enter and cause digestive problems, which can be dangerous for people with weak immunity.

More than 3,000 people die from foodborne illnesses each year, according to the CDC.

Experts say it’s also important to be aware of recalls and prepare your food carefully.