 It can be as simple as just kind of a tummy cramp and going to the bathroom, but it could also be as severe as causing death, and that's what's really scary. That's Meredith Carruthers, food safety expert with the Agriculture Department's meat and poultry hotline, the number of which we'll give you in a minute. She says one of the big mistakes that we make when grilling meats and poultry is not using a meat thermometer to make sure the food is cooked to a high enough internal temperature to kill any bacteria that might be in or on that food.