Holiday parties can be stressful, especially if you're the host. But besides the cleaning, decorating, and shopping, there's another thing to worry about: holiday food safety.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) says that millions of people get sick each year as a result of food borne illnesses. While restaurant kitchens typically have equipment that helps to make sure the food they serve is safe, many homeowners don't.

If you are planning on hosting a holiday party in which you will be preparing or serving food, keep the following tips in mind:

1. Clean your home thoroughly prior to guests arriving. Pay particular attention to the kitchen and bathroom areas. As a host, you should make sure your hands of clean, so wash them often. Invite your guest to "wash up" before eating. Having disposable hand towels in the bathroom for guests to dry their hands is ideal.
2. Be careful about serving foods that can contain food-borne bacteria, like eggnog made of raw eggs or raw oysters.
3. When thawing meats, don't thaw them on the counter. It's best to thaw meats in the fridge.
4. When thawing meats in the fridge, make sure they are in a container that will catch the drippings as the meat thaws.
5. Make sure your sink and faucet are cleaned and disinfected prior to washing vegetables.
6. Use a separate cutting board to cut fruits and vegetables and meats.
7. Always check the temperature of meat before serving. This is particularly important if serving chicken or pork, but ground meat can contain E. coli bacteria as well.
8. Use a cutting board made out of glass to cut meats and vegetables. A wooden cutting board may get accidentally knicked, which invites bacteria to harbor and grow.
9. Don't leave damp sponges laying out to collect bacteria. Sponges should be thrown in the dishwasher for sanitizing.