The 5-second rule dates from Ghenis Khan, who had a 5-day rule. In his mongolian empire, if meat was on the floor for over 5-days, it was comsidered unsantiary to eat it. This was broadcast earlier on the CBC and, I believe, the BBC.

Sent by Grant Horeczy, Boise Idaho | 2:45 PM ET | 07-11-2007

Ice Cream! Well it was actually Gelato, and excellent Gelato at that. The 5 second rule applies even more because of the melt factor. And actually, Gelato, or ice cream, don't quite gather as much dirt as something sticky, and...solid

Sent by Giuseppe | 2:46 PM ET | 07-11-2007

My cousin is an Infectious Disease specialist at the Mayo Clinic, and when he dropped a piece of fruit onto the floor of a 1800's farm house, he just picked it up and ate it. He said he has never heard of an infectious disease being caught from floor-contact food.

Sent by Lena | 2:47 PM ET | 07-11-2007

As an environmental microbiologist, if one is concerned about picking up bacteria from dropped food. The chances of getting pathogenic bacteria are greatly increased if the surface the food lands on is moist or has been wet for a period of time. Most dry dry surfaces will have about as much bacteria as the personal items we deal with and touch all the time from keyboards to your shoes.

Sent by Kirk Hartwein, O'Fallon, MO | 2:48 PM ET | 07-11-2007

I remember cooking a batch of roasted red potatoes that I took out of the oven and promptly dropped on the floor. Not wanting to start all over again, I scooped it back into the bowl and served it. My friend was helping me cook, and she approved of (or conspired with) the serving of these potatoes. When I told my husband later, he was HORRIFIED! I guess he is not a big a fan of the 5 second rule.

I know there was already a commercial about this but still, I am much more strict about this with my son ("no floor food") Figuring that it is a bad habit that I shouldn't promote...

Sent by Leslie | 2:48 PM ET | 07-11-2007

One thanksgiving, my dad and I were in the kitchen alone. He was carrying the turkey on the platter. It flew off, slid across the floor and came to a stop before anyone saw. He picked it up, looked at me, and said, "Don't tell your mother." I learned that you can eat anything that hits the floor.

Sent by Kathy | 2:49 PM ET | 07-11-2007

The 5-second rule, for me growing up in 1950s Brooklyn, worked only if you first "Kissed it up to God" to be sure the germs were dead.

Sent by Kee Malesky | 2:50 PM ET | 07-11-2007

For me, it has less to do with the amount of time involved than it does the floor the food has fallen on... I'm a little more lax in my own home than I would be in public, because I have a pretty good idea of the cleanliness of my floors!

Sent by Krista from Portland, Oregon | 2:51 PM ET | 07-11-2007

If it's in my home, rule applies. If outside, it's garbage.

Sent by Donna | 2:51 PM ET | 07-11-2007

I think it also depends more on the shape of what falls to the floor.
If it has an uneven shape with lots of bumps, it is going to have less contact with the floor, than something than is flat. And of course, the moisture factor is very important.

Another thing is WHERE on the floor it falls, if it is an area of high traffic, then you don't know what has been on the shoes of people that walked through there.

Sent by David Abad from Cincinnati | 2:52 PM ET | 07-11-2007

We eat so much food that is prepared for us out of our sight. Something dropped on MY kitchen floor is much less worrisome than thinking of what that food might have experience.

Sent by Barbara Wood | 2:53 PM ET | 07-11-2007

We had a observation about volunteers while I was in the peace corps in Nepal about the 'fly in the soup'.

A trainee volunteer would refuse the soup if there was a fly in it.

The first year volunteer would pick the fly out and eat the soup.

A second year volunteer would eat the soup, fly and all.

A third year volunteer (extendee) would ask "where is my fly?" if there was no fly in the soup.

Sent by Judy Steiger | 2:55 PM ET | 07-11-2007

One Saturday night in college after waiting 30 minutes in line for a slice of pizza from the best place in town, my friends and I headed out back behind the restaurant where the dumpsters were to wolf down our slices. Mine slipped off of its paper plate face down in an area that I knew was notoriously germ filled. Nevertheless, I was starving and figured if I blotted off the grease with a napkin all germs would be erased. I didn't get sick!!

Sent by Rebecca | 2:55 PM ET | 07-11-2007

What do you think of dumpster diving? I've had some tasty cherries tossed from buffet halls JUST as they were ripe. They were still in their case!

Sent by Beth | 2:56 PM ET | 07-11-2007

If it can be washed off (such as fruit) then it's edible...otherwise it's trash.

Sent by Christine | 2:58 PM ET | 07-11-2007

My dad would always get upset when we would take the bread out of its paper or plastic wrapping and set it on top of the packaging. His theory is how could that packaging, which has been from some bakery (usually on Arthur Ave.), onto a delivery truck then to the grocery store (usually a lower shelf), then a shopping cart, the converery belt at checkout and finaling into the car, possibly be cleaner then just putting the bread on the table. It's the same when I see people dump thier fries onto the placemat of a fast food restaurant. Is that place paper place mat really all that clean? And people are worried about five seconds on the floor.

Anyhow just some thoughts.

Sent by Matt Cesare | 2:58 PM ET | 07-11-2007

I work for a water and sewer company. There is no 5 second rule here. We know exactly what our operators bring in on thier boots! And all dropped food - even M&M's are garbage. At home, as long as there is no visible dog hair, its okey dokey!

Sent by Dana Van Horn | 3:00 PM ET | 07-11-2007

I long ago abandoned the 5-second rule in favor of the same-color rule. It takes into account all of the qualifying factors being discussed such as food texture, ground texture, etc. If you pick it up and it's a different color don't eat it. If the color is the same, go for it.

I also find support in a theory put forth in the popular book "Last Child in the Woods" wherein it is argued that children need to get a little dirt in their mouth to bolster their immune systems. So, for the kids, there are not rules. Just pick it up and enjoy.

Sent by Brian Merrill | 3:04 PM ET | 07-11-2007

I am a person that is not afraid of germs, in fact I know that we NEED to come into contact with germs in order for our bodies to be able to build a resistance to the harmful effects from germs. We all (should have) learned that there are good germs and bad germs.
I have a great concern about the extensive use of anti-bacterials AND antibiotics.
I started this belief more than 30 years ago when I first read "Andromeda Strain". Sure, it's a work of fiction, but many of the details of the story are based on fact. The chapter that freaked me out more than the "strain" itself was the chapter about the experimentation of anitbiotics on humans (prisoners) and what happens when all immune function is chemically halted in the body and then the anitbiotic chemical is taken away.

Sent by tim | 3:11 PM ET | 07-11-2007

Some of this talk about the 5-second rule is an example of how people make decisions based on group think and peer pressure. People laugh -- ha! It's so funny to not care! Adherence to mindless shortcuts is the reason Nazis were allowed to massacre people. It's the reason 1/3 of women were killed as witches in Western history. It's the reason rape victims are outcast, locked up and abused with psychiatric drugs. It's the reason our planet and people are dying, beset with pollution and cancers. Too many people value fitting in above learning what is truly good and right. What, if you act cute and make people laugh, no one will care if you do what's right -- is that the point? The guest talks as though what is believed is what is true. The reason I listen to NPR is to avoid this kind of group think that is broadcast all over other stations. Thank goodness some callers and bloggers bring up useful comments, such as empirical data and the reasonable idea that eating small amounts of pathogens bolsters the immune system. I know I sound like a grouch, but it's very painful that so many people go about in happy, mindless group think, confusing people's choices and neglecting all the horrible suffering other people go through, thereby fostering an environment that allows this suffering to occur.

Sent by Irene | 3:18 PM ET | 07-11-2007

Geez, Irene, lighten up--it's a light topic! Any analogy between the 5-second rule and the Third Reich is ludicrous.

My 5-and 7-year olds always pick up food and look at me and say "Five-second rule?" I then say yea or neigh with a short explanation of my reasoning. This way they're learning something. Our grocery puts out deli samples in tiny cups that my kids carry through the store... when a piece of turkey hit the floor of the store bathroom, it was "No! Of course, no!!!"

Sent by Matt | 4:15 PM ET | 07-11-2007

I'll lighten up when problems start to lighten up. That's staying connected. I doubt the healthiness of food has to do with the number of seconds but more with the condition of the floor and of the eater's immune system. People laugh when they hear "5-second rule" because it sounds like it should make sense but it really doesn't, because it skirts the real issues. They laugh because they want to act like they are on top of things that other people seem to understand. They laugh because they disconnect from thinking thoroughly enough to resolve the paradox -- it seems like a logical rule, but it's really misleading in several ways! Look at the post about the sewer plant -- if we really put in people's minds that number of seconds is the critical factor (which we do), they could die. Not everyone is intelligent enough to realize the rule is in many ways a joke.

Because people label things in ways that don't represent how we should think them through is why groups get outcast: "It's four seconds -- eat it! It's a witch -- shun it! It's a Jew -- suspect it! It's a mental defect -- drug it!" I know it sounds ludicrous, but people really do and did think this way. Though the circumstances are different, the way our brains function in terms of shortcuts is the same. That's why the analogy is not ludicrous but terribly important. Police, for example, often think in terms of "good people" and "bad people." So, they end up opposing victims who are slipped drugs and raped because then the victim's behavior is inappropriate. The public does this too. They don't think through to considering that something not presently seen could force bad effects onto a good person.

Cognitive shortcuts that obscure more complex issues enable clever politicians to garner public approval, saying "light" things like, "If Gore invented the Internet, how comes it starts with a dubya? Three dubyas!" People laugh and disconnect from thinking through critically to see what effect the speaker is trying to have on people's minds. This diverts people's minds from considering critical issues that the politician supports that can cost people their lives. This is why I think humor that is not enlightening may be over-rated. This kind of distracting tactic underlies this 5-second business. If we can see it here, we can see it in other matters too. Sure, it's important to have good cheer, but in ways that are helpful to people and not misleading.

Sent by Irene | 5:37 PM ET | 07-11-2007

An extension of the 5 second rule: what about the 2-week-in-the-refrigerator rule? My husband refuses to allow any food to be discarded until it has fuzz on it, and even then, he might brush off the fuzz and consume it. Recognizing that spoilage varies widely by food type, is there a general rule about holding, say, cooked meat and vegetables?

Sent by Pamela McGuire | 8:56 PM ET | 07-11-2007

I don't want to be rude, but aren't there more interesting, newsy topics than this... this and the Spice Girls. Has anyone else noticed Talk is just getting way more fluffy? And if you agree, how do you feel about it?

Sent by Julia | 11:14 PM ET | 07-11-2007

I'm sorry do you ever just lie back and have a nice conversation? I mean you're blowing this thing way out of porportion. I am 16 years old when i was little i ate tons of things off the ground, yes not smart on my part but i've done it. Am I still alive yes. So remember our immune systems were built to handle this. Acctually we probably ate raw meat at one point in our sociological evoloution. But due to the recent germ scare accross our nation people tend to take things like this way past their importance.

Sent by Ian | 12:22 AM ET | 07-12-2007

Neal, I remember it like it was yesterday. The weirdest thing I ever picked up off the floor and ate was a winged eel. It was May 16, 1982 and I was basking in the moonlight on Santa Maria, the southernmost of the Azores Islands, with my friends Freddie, Meghan, Gertie, Angela, Darius, Phoebe, Gennadi, Cynthia, Bob, Ian, Kelly, Nestor, Lavrenti, Ursula, Norbert, John, John, Ed, Nana, Tori, Frank, Jane, Perry, Laurie, Sue-Lynne, Dave, Thorpe, Javier, Doug, Rita, May, Connie, Sheila, Ben, Harry, Mona, Robert, and Fran. I was holding a Mai-Tai in one hand, and a live, slippery, 19 inch long winged eel named Jethro in the other hand. My friend Dave, who had a Ph.D. in Zoology from Columbia, told me that that was the only winged eel he had ever seen, and probably the only winged eel that ever existed, there having been no such animal in any zoological reference book he knew of. I dropped Jethro on the pool decking, and then promptly scooped him up by one of his feather wings, and shoved him into my mouth, eating him whole.

Sent by Guido Nance IV | 1:52 AM ET | 07-12-2007

Sorry Irene, but this is not a world shifting issue. It is an observation on how taboos are followed and change over time. Its not about 'fitting in' so much as it is how we naturally take cues from others as to what is socially acceptable behavior. Could that lead to negative behaviors, of course. But it also teaches people how to behave in a social environment because we are social creatures. If you want to take every sign of socialization to its most negative and extreme conclusion, you're welcome to drive yourself into a tizzy. Not all socialization activities equal Naziism, thats why they are called extremists. So the previous comment is correct, a correlation between a silly 'five second rule' and the Third Reich is ludicrous.

Sent by Maria | 9:50 AM ET | 07-12-2007

A story that has circulated for years involves an affluent hostess serving a roasted prime rib of beef at a dinner party. The butler enters the dining room with the enormous roast on a silver platter. The guest look on with horror as the roast slowly slips off of the platter and onto the floor.

The non-plussed hostess doesn't bat an eye and simply instructs Jeeves in a loud, authoritative voice, "Just take it back to the kitchen and bring out the OTHER roast."

I guess, what you don't know can't hurt you.

Sent by Elliot Baron | 8:50 PM ET | 07-12-2007

Somehow along the line, I think the 5-second rule may have turned into a 10-second rule for me. I'm pretty sure I call out the "10-second rule" but I never really thought about it too much. Am I alone here? Or was this a regional thing? Is the Midwest, perhaps, a bit cleaner that we can stand that additional 5 seconds?

Sent by joel | 1:05 AM ET | 07-13-2007

Consider that babies and toddlers put everything in their mouths, and a lot of it has been on the floor at some time before they sample it. Incidentally, that's how I often administered baby aspirin - by dropping it on the floor in front of the baby. Naturally the baby was interested in it and plopped it in her mouth.

Sent by kathryn | 2:40 AM ET | 07-13-2007

Fascinating comments, one and all IMO (especially loved Judy Steiger's Peace Corps posting LOL)

I note that there is, so far, at least one other comment r.e. dumpster diving (for those who don't know -- retrieving food from trash dumpsters). Several years ago, when unemployed, I became a very fast, talented diver; fed three whole families, besides my single self for several months.

Although I somewhat agree this is a bit "fluffy" topic -- why not? It's a real human thing. But I do feel some irritation about the big deal being made of dropped food issues, when so many, many of us in this world would be GLAD to eat what all the highly privileged assume is offal. Not suggesting you package up your dropped toaster patries, etc. and send it all to the needy, nor that you eat something that revolts you (please at least consider composting, though). Just please, recognise your extreme level of privilege, in even discussing the difference between dropped and non-dropped food. Thanks!

Sent by Beth E. Baker | 4:04 PM ET | 10-15-2007

After the trip we took to Peru a few years ago, our family changed the 5 second rule to the "I've been to Peru" rule.

Sent by Jim Kindred | 4:32 PM ET | 10-15-2007