It is commonly known that hot environment are where bacteria thrive the most, but there are bacteria that can actually thrive in cold conditions. Your refrigerator can be a breeding environment for microorganisms to thrive. Psychrophilic bacteria (psychrophiles) are bacteria that can grow in cold environment same as the refrigerator temperature. These group of bacteria can cause food spoilage and poisoning. They are harmful to human health. In view of this harmful effect, it is appropriate the refrigerator is always clean and free from microorganisms.
Improper packaging or storage of foods such as milk, eggs, raw meat, poultry and fish can make the refrigerator to be contaminated with psychrophilic bacteria. When the refrigerator is not in a clean state, it creates an enabling habitat for these bacteria and will contaminate the foods that are stored. When you eat food contaminated by bacteria, you are also directly taking in the bacteria. When the bacteria get into your system, they become pathogenic. Even if the bacteria didn't get into your system, these bacteria can release harmful toxins into food thus causing serious illness. Examples of these bacteria are the Pseudomonads, Listeria, Coliforms (E.coli), Salmonella and Vibrio. Psychrophiles causes illness such as meningitis, diarrhea, irritable bowel syndrome, sepsis, dysentery, gastrointestinal infections, and food poisoning. It can result to death in immunocompromised patient, older people and newborn.
The best way for reducing bacteria in your refrigerator is by properly cleaning its components and maintaining proper storage conditions. Always maintain hygiene by cleaning your refrigerator regularly with antibacterial products. Always make sure that your refrigerator is at 40°F or lower. It is the most ideal temperature to prevent or slow down the growth of harmful bacteria. Do not store raw meat, poultry or fish in same shelf. Never store your cooked food below meat, poultry, or fish on the shelf, it can drip raw fluid onto your food and may cause cross-contamination. Never leave the refrigerator door open unnecessarilly to prevent hot air carrying bacteria to enter. Always wipe off food spill. Make sure that all store foods inside the refrigerator is kept in tight-sealed containers to retain its moisture and prevent it from spreading to other foods, this is very important. And lastly remove any suspected spoilt food.
The question now is; When was the last time you cleaned your refrigerator? As the saying goes, An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.
Culled from http://www.justhealthng.info/2014/07/refrigerator-bacteria-and-their-harmful.html

Nice piece and reminder. All round hygiene is synonymous to healthy living.
Cheers!!

Symptoms of listeria sometimes begin few days after you’ve eaten contaminated food. But it can take as long as 2 months before the first signs and symptoms of listeria infection begin. Click on the link below to read more.
http://www.gigihealth.com/symptoms-of-listeria-what-is-listeria/