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all 166 comments

[–]CtrlC_plus_CtrlV 362 points363 points ago

i don't call it the 5-second rule. i call it the "i have an immune system, and i'll be goddamned if i'm not gonna use it" rule.

[–]vxx 122 points123 points ago

Not only using, I call it training.

Fuck the sagrotan mentality, it only causes allergies and a weak immune system.

Edit: I found out what you are doing.

You copy and paste the Top comment of reposts like TiR did.

[–]sp00kyd00m 25 points26 points ago

also, a lack of hook worms is a big contributor to allergies.

source: the radiolab episode on parasites

[–]vxx 7 points8 points ago

So we need this kind of parasite? We build a kind of symbiosis with them?

[–]sp00kyd00m 13 points14 points ago

in short, yes. radiolab explains it much better than i could. but yeah, in places where people have hook worms they dont really have allergies. or crohns disease. or other ailments. the hookworm bros look after you. the episode has a story of a guy with severe allergies who purposefully flew out of the country to infect himself with hookworms.

http://www.radiolab.org/2009/sep/07/

[–]taeratrin 7 points8 points ago

the episode has a story of a guy with severe allergies who purposefully flew out of the country to infect himself with hookworms.

I'm at work, so I can't listen to it. My question is: Did it work?

[–]sp00kyd00m 11 points12 points ago

yep. like a charm.

[–]Beefourthree 11 points12 points ago

And are there any downsides to hookworms? Like, do they slowly eat a hole in your heart or get lodged in your urethra?

[–]Gonoherpasyphilaids 13 points14 points ago

Lodged in your urethra is a downside?

[–]Beefourthree 15 points16 points ago

I mean, I guess "lodged firmly in your urethra" is better than "slowly and painfully writhing through your urethra."

[–]HigherFive 1 point2 points ago

Yes, but I cannot remember what they are. The podcast goes in depth and it's a pretty good episode too. Go listen to it.

[–]audiofyl 3 points4 points ago

All the episodes are good.

[–]njuty 7 points8 points ago

I think that was futurama.

[–]CodeTherapist 0 points1 point ago

Parasites Lost is my top fave Futuramas.

The statue of "The Known Universe" cracks me up every time.

[–]SailingSeasofRum 2 points3 points ago

Ill check out the show, but the internet symptoms of a hookworm infection seem pretty bad. I suppose if you had severe allergies it might outweigh the risks. I have also heard of people using parasites to lose weight and that is not a good idea...

[–]dtk320 0 points1 point ago

Good episode, but I can't help but feel that parasite expert misquoted darwin a bit. Darwin'sexact quote as I found it

" I cannot persuade myself that a beneficent and omnipotent God would have designedly created parasitic wasps with the express intention of their feeding within the living bodies of Caterpillars. "

The experts interpretation of the quote read as "god should not be personally blamed for having created parasitic wasp".

[–]NcUltimate 1 point2 points ago

One of my favorite episodes. Radiolab is a fantastic radioshow.

[–]sp00kyd00m 2 points3 points ago

radiolab is a fantastic show period. :) i wish everyone would listen to it.

[–]Space_Ninja 5 points6 points ago

This is why I don't wash my hands after using the toilet, or cover my mouth when I sneeze or cough. You're welcome.

[–]vxx -1 points0 points ago

If you really want to go into the complete opposite, do you think kissing is bad?

[–]ZiggyZombie 0 points1 point ago

I was the same until I moved to China. The floors here... Instead of the five second rule I call it Russian Roulette.

[–]sirunclecid -1 points0 points ago

I too call it training. My body fought it last time, why not now? Only works for some/most things.

[–]NonSequiturEdit -2 points-1 points ago

This is true. So let your kids eat dirt. No, seriously, it's probably good for them.

[–]northendtrooper 5 points6 points ago

Weird cause I call it the "IT'S STILL GOOD, IT'S STILL GOOD!" rule.

[–]kentuckyfriedfish 2 points3 points ago

No...no...do not try to use this logic. It's a very short step from this to trying to apply it to everything. I had an ex try to tell me it was "better" for him not to wash his hands after using the bathroom, because it would "strengthen his immune system", ie, make him ill from a poorly conceived theory he had only implemented into his life from high school onward and infect all the rest of society with his dirty piss hands.

[–]bigtallsob 7 points8 points ago

Just fyi, piss is pretty well sterile. It's the dirty shit hands you gotta watch for.

[–]Reposter_Of_Comments 1 point2 points ago

[–][deleted] 0 points1 point ago

but you know, brush it off a little before just to be safe.

[–]imakefilms 0 points1 point ago

Exactly what I think when I drop food. Upvote.

[–]dzeil 0 points1 point ago

Being someone who is afraid of worms.

Nope

[–]NoWuffo 23 points24 points ago

Ahh, I see someone likes Woot shirts!

[–][deleted] ago

[deleted]

[–]NoWuffo 2 points3 points ago

Yeah that's the way Woot works. They never re-print shirts once they're reckoned.

[–]kadaan 1 point2 points ago

Actually they do! Just not regularly. A lot of the shirts in their themed special sales are reckoned shirts (Let's Talk About Text, Baby).

There are even cases when Reddit gets so excited about a reckoned shirt that Woot reprints it for us!

[–]Flash_09 1 point2 points ago

I love Woot shirts. I swear I have at least 10 of them, this one included.

[–]MrSteveB 2 points3 points ago

Heck yes! I have this one too along with 22 others so far, and counting.

[–]LynxFX 3 points4 points ago

90% of my daily wardrobe is now woot shirts. Wearing furball right now.

[–]MrSteveB 2 points3 points ago

Ha me too. They are high quality and fit very well. Had hobo robo on all weekend while I was camping, along with a random skull one I got on a random day!

[–]JesterJosh 0 points1 point ago

I got 53 that aren't in the dirty laundry, plus 5 or so for family. But only 1 or 2 since they've gone up in price by 20%.

I miss my office job where I could wear them. Now I'm stuck in business casual all workday, but into a woot.shirt as soon as I get home.

http://imgur.com/0kAHb is my favorite.

[–]swollentiki 1 point2 points ago

I'm actually wearing that shirt right now.

[–]p0diabl0 0 points1 point ago

I got a random three pack with some pretty meh shirts. I later saw Adam Savage wearing one of them on Mythbusters - new favorite shirt.

[–]AndyOniyate 29 points30 points ago

At first I thought this was a Rule 34 joke and they were about to fuck the pretzel.

[–]Irahi 7 points8 points ago

I still think that.

[–]aroomacanvas 1 point2 points ago

That's enough internet for one day.

[–]statistical_anemone 72 points73 points ago

Mythbusters covered this. The rule is not in fact true. You can eat one piece of food of the ground after many minutes and not have their be any germs, and another food after a split second and have their be tons of germs. What's the difference? Wetness. Wetness sucks up the germs quite readily.

But, I think if anyone of us dropped something sticky and wet on the floor we'd sure as fuck not apply the five second rule. So, you're pretty much safe.

[–]TimBeluga 24 points25 points ago

Nope, we would go for the ten second rule.

[–]claudesoph 14 points15 points ago

I always use the I don't give a fuck I'll eat anything off the ground rule.

[–]The_Real_Johnny_Utah 14 points15 points ago

Sometimes... I worry about the cleaning products I use on my floors. Then I say fuck it and keep licking the floor anyway. It tastes like burning!

[–]lvlegabyte 1 point2 points ago

That means it's working!

[–]analog_guy 2 points3 points ago

Mythbusters is hardly peer-reviewed science. But this is.

[–]Kineticboy 3 points4 points ago

Even so, for some reason I seem to trust them 100% with every single thing. If they say it's busted, then I instantly will start believing that forever. Generally though it's not as strong for myths where they have to substitute too many things like when it involves someone getting hurt or when it would be too impractical to really recreate the myth... but for stuff like bull in a china shop? I will never ever use that phrase again, unless I'm referring to the beautiful grace of totally not knocking over all the things.

[–]tehgreatblade 0 points1 point ago

That episode was mind blowing.

[–]NoSubrannke 1 point2 points ago

I wouldn't say that if you drop something dry on the floor it may have no germs. It's more like, as soon as that pretzel hit the floor it'd have as many germs on it as it's likely to get. Picking it up 10 seconds later won't cause it to have any more germs than it did as soon as it hit the ground.

[–]kikaider1987 2 points3 points ago

plus it has alot to do with the traffic of the area as well, if dropped in a spot where people don't walk alot or prepare food by, then alot less germs are present to be picked up.

[–]brandonmartinez 0 points1 point ago

⬆ for alot consistency and dedication

[–]fattyhomer 0 points1 point ago

What's the 1st thing in your sentence? All i see is a box...

[–]brandonmartinez 0 points1 point ago

An up vote :)

[–]fattyhomer 0 points1 point ago

AHHHHH. Is there something missing on my computer that I need to download?

[–]brandonmartinez 0 points1 point ago

Probably not; it's Emoji, so unless you have an iOS device or a Mac (running 10.7 or higher), you won't see anything.

[–]slyder565 -1 points0 points ago

Scientists had already written papers on this useless subject, but hey, some special effects artists totally busted it.

[–]Werke -1 points0 points ago

The rule is indeed true and is actually the 30 second or more rule. 2 students did their biology thesis proving it true.

http://aspen.conncoll.edu/news/3464.cfm

quote from it

The women found no bacteria were present on the foods that had remained on the floor for five, 10 or 30 seconds. The apple slices did pick up bacteria after one minute, however, and the Skittles showed a bacterial presence after remaining on the floor for five minutes. The results prove, Goettsche and Moin said, that you can wait at least 30 seconds to pick up wet foods and more than a minute to pick up dry foods before they become contaminated with bacteria.

[–]mtux96 15 points16 points ago

It depends on how rich you are. If you are really poor, then it's a 30 second rule.

[–]ungulate 6 points7 points ago

If you are a dog then it's even longer.

[–]nSaneMadness 7 points8 points ago

If you're my dog, it's never got enough dirt on it.

[–]bw1870 2 points3 points ago

or cat shit.

[–]nSaneMadness 0 points1 point ago

This too.

[–]Ekiph 0 points1 point ago

or dog shit.

[–]ouTPhaze 6 points7 points ago

It's actually clause 23.1 in the official Germ Race rulebook. You have to wait for a 5second count before making a run for the food object. If the food object is removed within that time, then you missed it and have to wait for another round.

[–]MerlinFuel 1 point2 points ago

I have a strong love/hate relationship with going to write a joke and finding it already written. good work.

[–]Larsenmur 4 points5 points ago

can anyone explain to a european guy what rule you are talking about?

[–]gguy123 12 points13 points ago

It's common American folklore that if your food falls on the ground and you pick it up before 5 seconds of it being there it is still good to eat. Obviously there isn't much science to it; it's just a silly way to justify eating something after it fell to the ground.

[–]Slayergnome 3 points4 points ago

Yea it sucks when you can not get it up within 5 seconds... cause then you have to go to the 10 second rule.

[–]Gramage 3 points4 points ago

Shit I feel dumb. For a second I thought you were talking about some kinda pretzel untwisting rule I never heard of...

[–]tagrav 2 points3 points ago

Depends on how much you paid for that steak

[–]ObliviousDerpMaster 2 points3 points ago

We almost had to go to the ten seconds rule.

[–]ChelseaColleenn 2 points3 points ago

I take it you don't watch myth busters.

[–]OEFvet 2 points3 points ago

He does not.

[–]dtoppin 6 points7 points ago

Love the photo. Disagree with the 5 second rule.

[–]nexus_5 2 points3 points ago

Are you british?

[–]dtoppin 1 point2 points ago

Nope. Why do you ask?

[–]nexus_5 28 points29 points ago

I don't know, I just ask.

[–][deleted] ago

[deleted]

[–]Ragnalypse 1 point2 points ago

In the mean time, this post is for British eyes only.

[–]Marz157 0 points1 point ago

♪♪♪ Mr. F ♪♪♪

[–]afellowtree 1 point2 points ago

I can tell you that rule 34 is real...

[–]hrabib 1 point2 points ago

[–]whatbrighteyes 1 point2 points ago

what up wootshirt

[–]MrSteveB 1 point2 points ago

I have that shirt woot shirt. I got it when I bought the random $6.66 shirt they have every once in a while. I never wear it, but it's a cool shirt.

[–]Mefreh 1 point2 points ago

Mythbusters did an episode on this.

The transition of bacteria is almost instantaneous - things happen much faster at a microbial level than they do at our own. (generalization) The amount of bacteria that crosses over depends on many factors, of which a prominent one was how wet or dry the item in question was. (Wetter = more bacteria)

http://dsc.discovery.com/tv-shows/mythbusters/videos/five-second-rule-minimyth.htm

Here's a link.

[–]downhillonslicks 1 point2 points ago

no - heard on some NPR show - some smarty pants did the study - you drop it and it is germ'd up. doesn't matter the time - at least in a human ability to react.

[–]Coolbreezy 1 point2 points ago

Dirt doesn't keep track of time.

[–]ssssssss_boom 1 point2 points ago

I have this shirt! [woot!](www.shirt.woot.com)

[–]Kyle_Crafty 1 point2 points ago

No. The bacteria actually gets on the food as it hits the ground. That's like saying you dip your hands in water for 3 seconds and it doesn't get wet. Chances are you'll survive if you eat it regardless (assuming you have a proper immune system)

[–]killedmypassword 1 point2 points ago

no, it's not.

[–]mookstar1 1 point2 points ago

Ive eaten food i found on the street before. So my answer is sure it's a real rule, however it doesn't apply to my life. Also, I'm disgusting.

[–]MontrealBornanRaised 2 points3 points ago

For some reason I though of rule 34, and now I want to see pretzel porn.

[–]question_all_the_thi 3 points4 points ago

That's not how the 5 second rule works.

Five seconds is the time it takes the dog to reach it.

[–]no1elsehasthisname 2 points3 points ago

Not my dog. Try .5 second rule

[–]Theobon 1 point2 points ago

5 second rule is a simple way to explain things to kids. Kids like consistent rules as they are the easiest to internalize. Complex situation rules take a lot longer to learn and understand.

A parent wants to have a way to explain that:

  • Don't pick up things off the ground and put them in your mouth.
  • It is okay for them to pick up something you dropped and give it back to you to eat.

Thus the 5 second rule was created.

[–]Twoflappylips 1 point2 points ago

Mythbusters busted it...

[–]pingping44 0 points1 point ago

No shit.

[–][deleted] ago

[deleted]

[–]brownboy13Delhiting your posts since 2012[M] 3 points4 points ago

No URL shortners allowed.

[–][deleted] ago

[deleted]

[–]brownboy13Delhiting your posts since 2012[M] 0 points1 point ago

No.

[–]toezol 0 points1 point ago

Ok good to know!

[–]NickN3v3r 0 points1 point ago

According to the almighty wisdom of Mythbusters, the rule don't mean shit. Basically they theorized that the germs will be there no matter what and the five second rule does nothing to stall germs from being on the food cause they'll already be there anyway. Also I think it was the same episode that they discovered a dogs mouth is cleaner than Adam's mouth, but that's just small details you know?

[–]sheravi 0 points1 point ago

If you have cats, or pets of the shedding variety for that matter, I would say no.

[–]Aaronmcom 0 points1 point ago

WARNING does not work if dropped in human feces, paint, glue, or any other liquid/semi-liquid.

[–]superoriginalusernam 0 points1 point ago

I definately thought that this was refering to rule 34 for a minute and that this was a timed gangbang or something.

[–]shadumdum 0 points1 point ago

I have this t-shirt. One of my favorites.

[–]McPantaloons 0 points1 point ago

That germ is counting too fast. The pretzel looks like it just made contact and he's already on three.

[–]shoegarbagebiology 0 points1 point ago

Baron Vaughn knows all about this.

[–]abigboot 0 points1 point ago

The sad part is, I have that shirt...

[–]fuckface_academy 0 points1 point ago

Naturally the guy with the science gets no votes. Welcome to International Show N Tell.

[–]Thatswatsheproclaims 0 points1 point ago

Wtf....I literally just dropped my pretzel 10min ago then said fck it, threw it away, went on reddit to find this.....

Reddit never ceases to amaze me....and scare me...

[–]inuyasha10121 0 points1 point ago

Remember, what doesn't kill you only horribly debilitates you for the rest of your life.

[–]SirSandGoblin 0 points1 point ago

i work in kitchens and a guy i work with told me about how a health and safety officer once asked him how he had improved his kitchens hygiene since they last did an inspection, and he said "we changed the 5 second rule to a 3 second rule", apparently the inspector didn't take the joke well

[–]phsyco 0 points1 point ago

Warning: Does not work with soup

[–]ryoner89 0 points1 point ago

My 8th Grade Cooking teacher explained it best. As soon as it hits the floor, it's going to collect dirt and dust and whatever else can possibly stick to it. There's not really such a thing as the "5 second rule"

Certain types of food I'll shrug, brush it off, and eat it. Other things, such as sticky foods, I'll throw away.

[–]stargrazing 0 points1 point ago

Phew, I thought you were trying to call rule 34 on that picture at first.

[–]fromthe206 0 points1 point ago

I read through the Farmer's Almanac one year and it said as soon as food touches an unclean surface it is contaminated. There is no 3-second or 5-second rule. That's just something people made up.

[–]roger_podakter 0 points1 point ago

No, but your immune system is. Get over it.

[–]OatGerm 0 points1 point ago

Little germs: It fell, let's get it!

King germ: No! We must wait 5 seconds!

[–]smokyexe 0 points1 point ago

It's not. Mythbusters even had an ep about it.

[–]sambojomo 0 points1 point ago

No. And actually carpet transfers less bacteria to your dropped food than tile or other hard surfaces do due to reduced contact area.

[–]kinggod 0 points1 point ago

But then you get those little hairs on it. Fucking disgusting!

[–]sambojomo 0 points1 point ago

Oh definitely, I wasn't recommending it.

[–]eyereport 0 points1 point ago

Well, I just did it thanks to your recommendation, and now I need surgery to remove about half of a Persian rug from my colon. Thanks a lot, dude!

[–]Camtronocon 0 points1 point ago

They actually did a Mythbusters on this. Essentially it depends if the food is wet or dry if I remember correctly. If it's dry (i.e. a chip ((crisp)) or pretzel) it takes much longer (like 2 mins+) for to to show any extra bacteria.

If it's wet (i.e. like a piece of meat) it happens much faster.

[–]rantifarian 0 points1 point ago

That pretzel looks like a shit

[–]I_EAT_TEETH 0 points1 point ago

I call it the, "It didn't land in any bodily fluids." rule.

[–]random_seals 0 points1 point ago

Well if it's on the internet, it must be real, why would someone just go and lie to you?

[–]snoochiepoochies 0 points1 point ago

I thought this was a Rule 34 question. Took me a minute.

[–]mteck 0 points1 point ago

I bought this on a shirt for my bro last Xmas. He texted me after he received it and couldn't figure it out! Fucking rookies.

[–]nitefang 0 points1 point ago

Screw the Five Second rule. My rule is that if I can't see anything on it, and I am not in a biochemical weapons manufacturing plant, it is safe.

[–]CADM1UM 0 points1 point ago

i live by the 20 minute rule. 5 seconds stresses me out

[–]clowndubpope 0 points1 point ago

Not true, but still i would eat shit off the floor thats been there for over some odd hours

[–]clowndubpope 0 points1 point ago

Would not

[–]dastweezers 0 points1 point ago

Holy shit, germs the size of mice

[–]leveraction1970 0 points1 point ago

I grew up poor. We had a 7 second rule in order to save more food.

[–]monstrmyles 0 points1 point ago

Saw that shirt on woot months...still pretty funny.

[–]Wesleyvisser15 0 points1 point ago

I use the 5 second rule because i have a low immune system

[–]noobathiking 0 points1 point ago

This rule doesnt apply to thru-hikers. I shit you not, i had my snickers drop in horse/mule shit when i was doing the John Muir. I dusted it off and savored the nougat filled calories.

[–]hefnetefne 0 points1 point ago

It depends on the food item. An M&M is safe for quite a while. Pastrami on the other hand, is an instant no-go.

Source: Mythbusters

[–]FredL2 0 points1 point ago

I initially thought you meant a new internet rule regarding sex between food and germs. I need to cut down on my internet exposure.

[–]whatwhat27 0 points1 point ago

yes

[–]explodr 0 points1 point ago

If you drop something on the ground, it doesn't land surrounded by eager bacteria trying to get to it. It lands in bacteria, among other things.

[–]Unshackledai 0 points1 point ago

There was a recent study that said the rule is more likely closer to 10 seconds I think, although it was a while ago so I don't have the source, this is on a smooth dry surface, it decreases for a wet or corrugated one.

[–]adanishplz -2 points-1 points ago

If it hits the floor, it ain't food no more.

[–]Captainsimon12 0 points1 point ago

The average redditor probably has nastier germs on their hands than the floor has. I wouldn't be too worried.

[–]Selinux -1 points0 points ago

C'mon people! How are there still people who take this myth seriously?! If something falls on the ground it is for all intents and purposes instantly infected, unless the ground for whatever reason happens to be sterile.

[–]HyzerFlipDG -1 points0 points ago

no it's not a rule.. are you serious? Don't eat things that hit the ground!

[–]kabomlamma -1 points0 points ago

they are already on there before it even falls, so no

[–]Friedpiper -1 points0 points ago

Bacteria doesn't just hang out on the ground if it's got nothing to eat. Now if the pretzel fell in dog shit, well then that's a little different.

[–]jeahs21 -1 points0 points ago

not if u drop it in the toilet. shouldn't be eating in the bathroom anyway.

[–]Dragon_Whiskers -1 points0 points ago

Yes

[–]bolt289 -1 points0 points ago

If it's a vegetable the five-second rule need not apply, for all other food types then yes - eat it.

[–]raazman -3 points-2 points ago

It's legit.

[–][deleted] -2 points-1 points ago

Somehow I knew you were some kind of spammer or something. Uninspired post looks like something out of a shitty top 10 list. Please delete your account and don't come back.

[–]TheOdinson6690 -1 points0 points ago

Those are generous germs, giving you a extra 2 seconds and all