When my child was just 18 months old, my grandmother called me over with a cup of juice and asked if it was safe to give it to the baby. Without thinking much, I took a few sips to check whether it was too cold or too sour.

Almost immediately, I noticed a terrible aftertaste and realized something was wrong. I spit it out and asked my grandmother what I had just tasted. She calmly admitted that the juice had come from an old jar she found in the pantry.

She explained that the jar had been bloated and even had mold on top, but she believed it would be fine because she had carefully poured the juice without letting the mold get into the cup. She only decided to have me try it first at the last moment.

I was horrified to realize that, if I hadn’t been there, she might have given the spoiled juice directly to my one-year-old child. Thankfully, her last-minute decision prevented what could have been a dangerous situation and taught me the importance of never taking food safety for granted.