Most people today are familiar with the old wife’s tail the “five second rule.” That rule we learned when we were young where if we drop a piece of food on the ground we have five seconds to pick it up before it becomes “un-edible.” I know personally I always use this rule even though I know it might not be true. It appears though that there might actually be some scientific evidence to back this theory up.
Research out of Ashton University performed a study that showed that the five-second rule actually does have some truth to it. The study was performed by final year biology students and led by professor Anthony Hilton. In this experiment they observed the transfer of E. Coli and staphylococcus aureus from various types of food to multiple types of flooring. The types of flooring they used consisted of carpet, laminate and tile floors. For food they tested pasta, toast, biscuits, and some sort of sticky sweet. Than tested many different combinations when they were in contact from a range of 3 to 30 seconds
In their results, they concluded that, “time is a significant factor in the transfer of bacteria from a floor surface to a piece of food.” They also concluded that it also depends what type of food and what surface you drop it on. It appears that if you drop food on a carpeted surface, bacteria is much less likely to transfer from the carpet to the food. They also found that if you drop moist foods on either tile or laminate surfaces for more than 5 seconds there is a much higher risk of bacteria transferring to your food.
Overall, I think this experimental trial does show that there is some truth to the “five-second” rule. Chance is always present so for that reason we cannot be absolutely certain that this theory is true but the results do reject the null hypothesis that the five second rule is only a myth. We do not know the absolute risk of eating a piece of food after five seconds but we do know there is increased relative risk involved. If a piece of food (especially moist) were to be dropped on the floor, a reasonable person probably should stay away from eating it after five seconds.
http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/274012.php
http://www.aston.ac.uk/about/news/releases/2014/march/five-second-food-rule-does-exist/
Hmmm this is actually really interesting because my friend conducted a study testing the five second rule and found different results. She found that bacteria transfers to food instantly and it doesn’t matter the amount of time it stays on the floor after it has already touched it. Here’s an article about the five second rule that more backs up what my friend found. http://www.discovery.com/tv-shows/mythbusters/videos/five-second-rule-minimyth/
I think we are all guilty of using the five second rule! So since bacteria takes longer to adhere to the food, I still wonder how much bacteria gets on the food in those 5 seconds. It could still be a lot of bacteria but how detrimental is it for us to eat it? We pick up bacteria everywhere with everything we touch that sometimes I feel like it can’t hurt too much. http://www.webmd.com/a-to-z-guides/features/5-second-rule-rules-sometimes- This article talks about how since floors are dry, a lot of bacteria can’t live unless it is in a moist place, so some of the more dangerous bacteria won’t adhere to the food with the five second rule on a dry floor. So maybe don’t use the rule if it’s a wet surface!
I love the 5-second rule! Although it may hold some truth; I believe it obviously depends on the situation or the location one is in. For example, when I was little I was walking in New York City with my family when we stopped to get a soft pretzel. As a spastic child, I dropped the entire thing on the ground. In this scenario the 5 second rule was not even an option; I simply picked it up and threw it out. However, if I were to drop something in my room or in a place that I know is clean then I would be more likely to eat it. Still it sounds crazy to say that I would voluntarily eat something knowing that it had been on the floor. National Geographic also conducted a study on this topic and whether or not to eat the cookie you dropped on the floor. Check it out!
http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2014/03/140315-five-second-rule-bacteria-food-safety/