There’s a saying that rules are meant to be broken. Everyone can name one or more rules they dislike and even break.
What about the five-second rule?
What do you do when you drop your last cookie, chip, M&M, or morsel of chocolate cake on the kitchen floor?
Do you pick it up and immediately discard it?
If you don’t, no need to curse, fret, or have a hissy fit. There’s no need to look around and see if anyone is watching.
If you’re lickety-split, within the five-second rule, grab, blow, and toss it into your mouth. Enjoy that last morsel as if nothing happened.
That is, if you believe in the five-second rule.
I’ve retrieved a craved morsel off the home floor a time or two.
What’s the five-second rule?
The five-second rule allows for the gratification of eating something dropped. The rule is a hygiene urban legend that permits people to safely eat food dropped on the floor.
Of course, eating some things dropped and retrieved within the allowed time may be riskier than others based on the food and where it fell.
Food hygiene and possible contaminants are nothing to take lightly.
The big question is – is the dropped food safe to eat?
Inquiring minds want to know if the 5-second rule is based on science.
I know from raising children that crawling toddlers pick up almost anything off the floor and place it into their mouths. We cannot be too critical of them; they don’t know better.
Does the 5-second rule allow people who should be conscious of food hygiene and know better to be adolescents?
Who scoops up fallen ice cream off the floor and eats it?
Yes, you can count on the dropped ice cream, especially the part kissing the floor, being contaminated with microorganisms on the floor.
But what about a cookie or a piece of hard candy?
Consider contaminants like bacteria and the different kinds of bacteria. Although we can see hair and other visible contaminants, bacteria are invisible to the eye. In addition, one doesn’t know how much bacteria exist on that spot.
Healthline references Rutgers researchers for the science of the 5-second rule involving eating dropped food.
The research revealed that the following factors contribute to the degree of ground-to-food contamination: moisture, surface type, and contact duration on the specific surface. These things help to determine the likelihood of one being infected by bacteria and the possibility of illness.
Here are a few of their case studies and findings:
“The moisture of a food item has a direct correlation with contamination.
For example, the study tested watermelon, which has high levels of moisture. Researchers found it had more contamination than any other food item that was tested.
When it comes to the surface, researchers discovered that carpet has a very low transfer rate. Tile, stainless steel, and wood have much higher transfer rates.
In some instances, the transfer of bacteria can begin in less than one second.” The 5-Second Rule for Food: Fact or Fiction?
Food hygiene and safety are personal responsibilities and shouldn’t be taken lightly. Self-care and the care of others are priorities.
Here are three things to consider.
The 5-second rule is not a law.
Following the 5-second rule is entirely up to the individual.
Food hygiene is a top priority.
I hope you’re happy and well.