Step away from the cookie.
The science is in, and deciding whether to eat that chip isn't as simple as snatching it up within five seconds.It’s a question that never seems to die: Is it safe to eat food you’ve dropped if you pick it up quickly enough?
It seems like a simple question, yet science hasn’t always taken it seriously. Fortunately, modern researchers are finally unraveling the nuances behind the five-second rule.The key to the five-second rule is understanding how quickly bacteria transfers from the surface of your floor to your food. A lot of other folks have gotten this measurement wrong, says food scientist Donald Schaffner of Rutgers University.
The bigger culprit here is not time but moisture. Wet food picked up more bacteria than drier food, like bread or gummy candy. Carpeted surfaces transferred fewer bacteria to food than did tile or stainless steel, since it soaked up the bacterial solution the scientists applied. But is it ever safe to eat food from the ground?
Still, the five-second rule will likely endure. “People really want this to be true,” Schaffner says. “Everybody does this; we all eat food off the floor.”
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