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Clemson University and The New York Times Comment on the Five-Second Rule

By Brian | May 16, 2007 | Share on Facebook

More proof that nothing is beyond scientific study:

Prof. Paul L. Dawson and his colleagues at Clemson have now put some numbers on floor-to-food contamination.

First the researchers measured how long bacteria could survive on the surfaces. They applied salmonella broth in doses of several million bacteria per square centimeter, a number typical of badly contaminated food. On surfaces that had been contaminated eight hours earlier, slices of bologna and bread left for five seconds took up from 150 to 8,000 bacteria. Left for a full minute, slices collected about 10 times more than that from the tile and carpet, though a lower number from the wood.

What do these numbers tell us about the five-second rule? Quick retrieval does mean fewer bacteria, but it’s no guarantee of safety.

Next up for Dr. Dawson: “Liar, Liar, pants on fire.” Volunteer test subjects may contact Dr. Dawson directly. Qualification involves a weak sense of morality, a high tolerance for pain, and flammable pants.

(Hat tip: Will Fenton, Penn Band Alum)

Topics: The World Wide Weird | 2 Comments »

2 Responses to “Clemson University and The New York Times Comment on the Five-Second Rule”

  1. Jeff Porten says at November 30th, -0001 at 12:00 am :
    Bacteria are usually measured in the millions, so I think the “no guarantee of safety” is extremely misleading. If you accumulate only 8,000 bacteria in the first five seconds, heck, 15-30 should be fine if you’re not immunocompromised. We’re naturally exposed to hundreds of millions of infective agents a day, and our T-cells knock them all to hell.

    Granted that there are some nasty buggers that are lethal in small numbers, but those rarely make it to kitchen floors. And if they have, chances are you’ve got badly contaminated food elsewhere already.

  2. Brian says at November 30th, -0001 at 12:00 am :
    I’m no expert here, but the article does say this:

    The infectious dose, the smallest number of bacteria that can actually cause illness, is as few as 10 for some salmonellas, fewer than 100 for the deadly strain of E. coli.

    Apparently, not all infective agents are created equal…