By John Collins

With American's ever increasingly harried lifestyles, microwavable meals and leftovers are daily specials in households across the United States.

And why not? More than likely you're working a full-time job that often overlaps into your supposed leisure time. Add in kids' activities like soccer and music lessons and whatever spare time you might have is otherwise booked.

So the fact that you're not preparing dinner from scratch every night is no surprise. As long as you keep in mind that all foods, even leftovers, have an expiration date, you'll be okay.

Of course there's no expiration date printed on the bottom of that lasagna dish or leftover chicken parmigiana. And some deterrents should be apparent. For example, you never want to taste food that looks or smells strange to see if it's still edible. Just toss it.

If you see mold, you trash it. The poisons molds can form are found under the surface of the food, so even if you cut it out, you may not be getting all the toxins.

Use the table below as your point of reference, and you'll know if your food is still good or gone as bad as a fox in a henhouse.