The 5 Second Rule
Would you eat food that fell on the floor? That\u2019s the question Hannah and Dara are getting their teeth into this week as they put the so-called \u20185 second rule\u2019 through its paces.
For some people it\u2019s 3 seconds, and for others its 10 \u2013 especially if it involves a dropped ice cream and a screaming child. But microbiologist Don Schaffner says there\u2019s no safe amount of time to leave food on the floor if you\u2019re planning to eat it. And while you might think buttered toast would pick up the biggest number of bugs, it may surprise you to hear that wet foods like watermelon are actually the worst when it comes to attracting harmful bacteria. \n \nIf all this is putting you off your dinner, the bad news is that the rest of your kitchen is also a microbiological minefield. Research shows nearly 70% of us keep our fridges are the wrong temperature, which sparks a lively discussion about whether it\u2019s ever safe to reheat rice.
For home hygiene guru Sally Bloomfield it\u2019s all a question of being a bit more clever about the kind of germs we expose ourselves to and weighing up risks.
Contributors:
Dr Don Schaffner: Rutgers University\nDr Ellen Evans: Cardiff Metropolitan University\nProfessor Sally Bloomfield: International Scientific Forum on Home Hygiene
Producer: Marijke Peters\nExecutive Producer: Alexandra Feachem\nA BBC Studios Audio Production