Am I the only one who thinks the '5 second rule' for dropped food is actually backed by some real science?

I was looking into this after I dropped a piece of toast on my kitchen floor last week and picked it up in like 3 seconds. Everyone always says it's a myth, but I found a study from a food science lab at a university in Illinois. Turns out, if the floor is dry and not super dirty, bacteria transfer is pretty minimal in the first few seconds. Like, they tested different surfaces and times, and the difference between 2 seconds and 30 seconds was huge. I'm not saying eat off a public bathroom floor, but my own kitchen linoleum after I swept it? I'm taking that chance. Does anyone else secretly eat dropped food if it's quick enough?

2 comments

2 Comments

ivan821mo ago

Oh man I have been doing this for years and I totally agree with you. That study you mentioned is exactly what I tell people when they give me crap about eating dropped food. The key is the surface condition and moisture, like if the floor is dry and you just swept it, the bacteria barely have time to climb onto the food. I read somewhere that the real risk is when the food lands on a wet surface or something sticky, because that helps bacteria transfer a lot faster. My kitchen floor is usually clean enough that I feel fine with a quick pickup, especially if it's something dry like a cracker or toast. The 5 second rule is more about common sense than actual science, but it's not totally made up either.

umab351mo ago

That study was funded by the food industry.