Honestly...this piece hit home for me. As an avid follower of the 5 second rule, I was determined to ignore the science here. After all, how much grossness could get on your food after just 5 seconds. As it turns out, quite a lot can. This microbiologist is showing the disturbing evidence why you should never follow the 5 second food rule...prepare yourselves.
Videos by Wide Open Country
Microbiologist Ruins My Life By Showing Why You Should Never Follow 5 Second Food Rule
Okay, that headline might be a little dramatic, but honestly it is sort of true. At least in the sense that it completely changed how I look at food in my kitchen. Don't lie, many of us have dropped a piece of food on the floor and we think, "Oooohh 5 second rule!" The 5 second food rule is something we learn very early on in life.
The general premise of the rule is that if your food is on the ground for five seconds or less, it doesn't leave enough time for dirt, bacteria, and a whole host of other grossness to acquire on it. I am not sure where this rule originated from, or if it ever had any scientific backing, but I know most of us followed it.
Now, a microbiologist is popping all of our bubbles and showing us exactly why we should never follow the 5 second food rule. Buckle up folks, things are about to get gross. Nicholas Aicher, a senior quality control analyst, put the 5 second food rule to the test. He tested the amount of bacterial growth on food after it had been dropped on the floor and picked up within one second, five seconds, 10 seconds, 20 seconds, 30 seconds and one minute.
The Results
In the video, Aicher puts petri dishes on a dirty surface for each of the corresponding times. Then he places them in an incubator and checks them some time later. The results are...disturbing. As expected, the petri dishes that were on the floor for longer periods of time had a plethora of bacterial growth on them.
However, less expected was what happened on the dishes that were on the surface for the shorter periods of time. The dish that was on the dirty surface for just five seconds still showed plenty of bacterial growth. Enough to make your stomach churn at the thought of putting it into your mouth.
This video clearly debunks the myth that food that is dropped for five seconds or less is "clean." In fact, over top of his video Aicher writes, "Five seconds or 60, it'll be nasty either way." Allow this to be your guide when it comes to the five second food rule.
