The five-second rule.  It’s probably most commonly used in elementary or middle school, you can also hear people use it nowadays every now and then. People often ask whether the five second rule really does apply.

Kenia Sarabia, a freshman here at Sahuaro, believes that it can apply depending on what food it is.  If it’s powdered, you shouldn’t eat it. Ian Morkan, another freshman, says no because you can catch diseases and bacteria.

According to Adam Taylor, someone in the BBC Earth community, “Scientifically speaking, there is no five-second rule. If the food touches surface for a nanosecond it is contaminated.” Jack Gilbert, a microbial ecologist at the University of Chicago in Illinois says, “As soon as any food touches the floor, of course it will pick up dirt, and therefore microbes inside that dirt.” According to a 2015 study, there are about 9,000 different species of microscopic organisms inside your house including 7,000 bacteria. Most of them are harmless. 

To conclude this, the five second rule won’t always apply, but if you don’t want to increase the chances of getting sick, make sure nobody in the household is sick with something. Cheers to all of you who eat food off of the floor and those who will consider doing it in the future.