Oops! In the rush
to get to school, you drop a piece of toast on the floor.
Do you throw it away or decide it's still OK to eat?
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Food can
still look appetizing after it has fallen on the
floor. But is it safe to eat?
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iStockphoto
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If you're like most
people, you eat it. Maybe you follow the "5-second
rule," which claims foods are safe to eat if you pick
them up within 5 seconds of dropping them.
But you might want to
think again. Scientists now say that 5 seconds are all it
takes for foods to become contaminated
with enough bacteria to make you sick.
Bacteria are
single-celled organisms that can cause many kinds of
illnesses. Some kinds of bacteria can grow on food. If we
eat foods on which these bacteria are growing, we can
become sick. Common symptoms include vomiting
and diarrhea.
One of these food-borne
bacteria is Salmonella. It makes 1.4 million
people sick every year. Earlier this year, 370 people
became sick after eating peanut butter that had been
contaminated with Salmonella at the manufacturing
plant. Salmonella are often found in raw eggs and
chicken. Cooking kills these bacteria, which is why it is
so important to cook eggs, chicken, and other foods
thoroughly.
Being a good housekeeper
is a second tip for preventing infection.
If household surfaces aren't washed thoroughly, they can
support Salmonella for weeks.
But how long does it take
these bacteria to attach to food? To answer that question,
a team of scientists at Clemson University in South
Carolina decided to test the 5-second rule, using sandwich
ingredients. First, they placed a known amount of Salmonella
cells on three surfaces: wood, tile, and carpet. They
placed a slice of bread and a slice of bologna on each
surface for 5, 30, or 60 seconds.
After just 5 seconds,
both the bread and bologna picked up enough bacteria to
make you sick.
"Someone making a
sandwich might follow someone who, a day before, used that
surface to cut meat or another raw food. It might not look
contaminated, but could have bacteria that would be
harmful," said Paul Dawson, the food scientist who
led the study.
So, forget the 5-second
rule. If your toast lands on the floor, toss
it out. Stick a fresh slice of bread in the
toaster. And this time, be careful not to drop it!—Jennifer
Cutraro