Eating Fallen Food on Floor Within 'Five-Second Rule' Isn't Safe, Rutgers Scientists Say
The "Five-Second Rule" Isn't True or Effective
The five-second rule is a popular term used to determine whether a food is still safe to eat or not.
If the food fallen off the floor was caught within five seconds, the rule states that it's safe to eat. However, researchers from Rutgers were able to debunk the popular notion saying that it's not only ineffective, it could also be dangerous.
The Five-Second Rule Practice Debunked
The research posted on the journal, Applied and Environmental Microbiology, states that time doesn't matter when it comes to food falling to the floor. The bacteria and other harmful organisms already stuck to the food as soon as it made contact with the floor.
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"The popular notion of the 'five-second rule' is that food dropped on the floor, but picked up quickly, is safe to eat because bacteria need time to transfer," Rutgers researcher Donald Schaffner said in a statement.
"Five-Second" Rule Tested on Four Surfaces with Four Different Foods
The Rutgers researchers did their research on four different surfaces with four different foods to give their disapproval of the popular notion some scientific backing. The researchers tested bread, bread and butter, gummy candy and watermelon on ceramic tile, wood, carpet and stainless steel, Science Daily noted. They used the Enterobacter aerogenes bacteria, a microorganism that grows in the human digestive system which is also closely related to salmonella.
"Five-Second" Rule Cannot Hold Water Against Moisture
In their research, the scientists were able to determine that the watermelon was the most contaminated, while the gummy bear was the least one. Schaffner said that since bacteria don't have legs, they use moisture as a vehicle to carry themselves over to a surface or in this case, food, Daily Mail noted. Furthermore, the wetter the food, the higher the chances of transferring bacteria to it.
The researchers also tested how long the food has touched the different surfaces. The carpet is reportedly having the least amount of transfer rate compared to other surfaces. Surprisingly, the wood's transfer rate varies upon which food is dropped on it.
In conclusion, there is a semblance of truth in the "five-second" rule over foods as the rate of contamination does matter in certain foods and surfaces. Longer contact time does result in higher rate of contamination. However, Schaffner said that the notion is "oversimplified" and that bacteria can transfer at a surprisingly fast rate.
