I heard a report on the radio this morning that said pizza injuries have caused some people to go to the hospital. What is that all about?

You may be referring to a Sept. 5 tweet by the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission that reported on the number of trips to hospital emergency rooms that consumers across the country have said were associated with … pizza.

Yep, I said “pizza” and “emergency rooms” in the same sentence. How is that possible?

It turns out that last year alone, some 2,300 hospital emergency room visits by consumers were reportedly for pizza-related injuries, according to the CPSC. The government agency said many of the injuries were caused by, but not limited to:

– Cuts obtained from cutting pizza

– Burns obtained from hot pizzas and hot pizza pans

– People falling while carrying a pizza

– People falling while in a pizza restaurant or shop

And, according to the tweet, at least one person fell out of bed while reaching for a pizza. D’oh!

The data for the pizza injuries report was generated by the CPSC’s National Electronic Injury Surveillance System, which collects data on consumer product-related injuries that occur nationwide.

Injuries aside, pizza remains one of the nation’s most popular foods, with about 1 in 8 Americans reporting that they consume pizza on any given day, according to a report from the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Most adults, 59 percent, eat pizza for dinner, while 28 percent of adults eat it for lunch. Some 11 percent of adults eat it for a snack, while 2 percent of folks even eat pizza for breakfast.

USDA data also shows that on a day that a typical adult eats pizza, the pie accounts for approximately 27 percent of that person’s daily calorie intake, 39 percent of that person’s daily saturated fat intake, 38 percent of that person’s daily sodium intake and 35 percent of that person’s daily protein intake.

The pizza also serves as a source of important vitamins and minerals: On a typical day, the dish provides 37 percent of the person’s calcium intake and 58 percent of the person’s lycopene intake.

So the next time you indulge in pizza, enjoy, but take it safe and easy. (Author: Turner, T. (2018). Chow Line is a service of the College of Food, Agricultural, and Environmental Sciences and its outreach and research arms, OSU Extension and the Ohio Agricultural Research and Development Center)

Pat Brinkman is the Family and Consumer Sciences Educator for Ohio State University Extension.