have you ever eaten a food that has fallen on the floor? Surely you have also heard of the so-called “five-second rule”, which says that you can eat food that has fallen on the ground if you pick it up before this time has elapsed. But it’s not true. And it is that, the microorganisms and bacteria present in the soil can be transferred to food in less than a second.
This is how they have shown researchers at Rutgers University in New Jersey. To study this phenomenon, they analyzed different parameters that contribute to food contamination, such as the type of food, the type of surface, and the contact time of the food in question with the soil.
They threw food with different degrees of moisture from a height of 12.5 centimeters: plain bread, bread with butter, watermelon and jelly beans. Well, they verified that the bacteria present in the soil were transferred more quickly to the watermelon than to any other food, so humidity is a determining factor. Meanwhile, the ones that suffered the least contamination were the jellies.
«We must be aware that the environment around us is not sterile: there are microorganisms everywhere, although this does not mean that they are all pathogenic. Therefore, when food is dropped on the ground, it will be impregnated with the microorganisms found in it. If we consume food that has fallen on the floor, the impact on health will depend on the type of microorganisms transferred to the food (whether they are pathogenic or not) and the number (a few cells or millions). The point is that we cannot know a priori if the transferred microorganisms are pathogenic or how many there are,” explains Ana Isabel Vitas, Head of the Food and Water Microbiology Laboratory of the University of Navarraand coordinator of the Food Safety subject at the Faculty of Pharmacy, according to ‘La Voz de Galicia’.
The health risks of eating food that has fallen on the floor
Even if we don’t see them there are millions of microorganisms living in the soil, some of which are pathogens. Therefore, when a food comes into contact with the soil, even for less than a second, it becomes full of these living organisms.
In the case of ingesting the food, you will be introducing into your body a large number of harmful elements that can cause infections. An example of this type of bacteria is E.coli, some strains of which can cause serious gastrointestinal diseases.
Is it enough to wash it with water?, you ask yourself. Although it can somewhat reduce the dangerousness of microorganisms, not a 100% effective solution. Therefore, when food falls on the floor, it is best to throw it away.
