Three second rule?

Found on USA Today:
Do you eat food that falls on the floor? Almost eight in 10 Americans say it isn’t safe to eat food dropped on the floor despite the so-called rule that says if it’s on the floor for a few seconds it’s safe to eat.(American Dietetic Association/ConAgra Foods/Anne R. Carey and Juan Thomassie)

I think it all depends on the floor that the food falls on and what the food is. If it is a cookie that falls on the floor and it has only seen a brief glimpse of my floor, then I'll pick it up and deem it safe for consumption. Now, if it is taco meat or something that is moist and can get gunk in it, hell no you ain't eating that. It's nasty.

It also depends on the floor. Now, under the little kids' table in the corner of my dining area, I need to mop, I'm embarrassed to admit. There are some dried up little macaroni and cheese pieces, there are some spaghetti sauce remants dried on the floor. If something - anything - falls over there - no way Jose! That is deemed nasty.

My best friend once told me the story about her then 2-year-old son. Like in my house, if you find a cookie or piece of cereal on the floor, it is pretty much fair game and the 2-year-old is going to eat it with mom not doing much more than shrugging and wishing she had found it first to trash it. Well, she and the child were at McDonald's when they were waiting in line and he found a french fry on the floor. She had to snatch it from his hand and explain in hushed tones so no one else would hear "I know that we sometimes eat food we find on the floor at home, but we don't do that at other places." You know, for a 2-year-old, it was a perfectly acceptable french fry just waiting for him.


I'd be willing to bet all that I own that if you watched that 78 percent who said it wasn't safe, they occasionally eat something that they've dropped. These are the same people who claim they have never masturbated, too. Ha! Yeah, right.