Even after having followed these steps, you shouldn’t reheat a meal more than once. Each time it cools down, you offer more opportunities for the harmful bacteria to multiply, making it harder to kill them all off the next time you stick them in the oven or microwave.

This is particularly true for one particular takeaway favourite – rice – which can host spores of a nasty bug called Bacillus cereus. When left in food, the bacteria produces toxins that trigger diarrhoea and vomiting. Unfortunately, these toxins are “heat stable” meaning that even if you heat the rice to the point of killing all the bacteria, the toxins will survive – and you’ll soon notice the effects of ingesting those poisons.

If you do want to save your leftovers, you should cool the rice quickly – before the bacteria can start churning out those toxins – and refrigerate within an hour of cooking. Otherwise you really are “playing Russian roulette with your guts”, says Mosley.

Watch another Trust Me I’m A Doctor video: How much coffee should you drink?

The video above is an original short co-commissioned with Britlab. For more great Britlab stories, visit their YouTube channel.

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