With a toddler in our household and the fact that covid is still prevalent in our area, my wife and I haven't had a meal in a restaurant together for over a year. I went to one for lunch with a friend on an off time but other than that, our family opts for home cooking or takeout. Speaking of home cooking, I prepare ingredients for salads in advance. Often times I'll be found in the kitchen chopping up carrots, celery, onions and, red bell peppers for salads to go with our lunch or dinner selection.

When taking care of my chopping duties, I often remind myself to take some extra time and really do a decent job washing the vegetables...not just run the food underneath the faucet for a few seconds. I'll actually do some scrubbing, especially on celery where there are visible dirt spots.

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The reason why I bring up my kitchen prep and vegetable washing duties is that I recently received an email regarding a survey that was conducted by Gurney's. While Massachusetts doesn't rank in the States That Wash Their Vegetables the Most or Least, which to me seems a little disturbing, the Bay State does rank at #8 as one of the states that wash their fruits the most. New York is at the top of the heap for two lists including States That Wash Their Vegetables the Most and States That Wash Their Fruits the Most. Good for the Empire State. We could do a bit better and at least get on the vegetable washing list. You can view the entire report and more by going here. Do you wash your produce?

While on the topic of food, let's take a look at these restaurants.

50 Most Popular Chain Restaurants in America

YouGov investigated the most popular dining brands in the country, and Stacker compiled the list to give readers context on the findings. Read on to look through America's vast and divergent variety of restaurants—maybe you'll even find a favorite or two.

How about a look at some delicious drinks? 

What Are the Signature Drinks From Every State?

Keep these food items away from your dog. 

LOOK: Here Are 30 Foods That Are Poisonous to Dogs

To prepare yourself for a potential incident, always keep your vet's phone number handy, along with an after-hours clinic you can call in an emergency. The ASPCA Animal Poison Control Center also has a hotline you can call at (888) 426-4435 for advice.

Even with all of these resources, however, the best cure for food poisoning is preventing it in the first place. To give you an idea of what human foods can be dangerous, Stacker has put together a slideshow of 30 common foods to avoid. Take a look to see if there are any that surprise you.

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