c/everyday-myth-debates

Serious question, is the 'five second rule' for dropped food actually safe?

I was at a family picnic in Grant Park last weekend and saw my cousin drop a chip, pick it up, blow on it, and eat it, saying 'five second rule'. It made me think about this old myth everyone seems to believe. I looked it up once and a study from Rutgers found bacteria can transfer to food in less than a second, especially on wet surfaces like a kitchen floor. The type of surface matters way more than the time. A dry chip on a clean picnic blanket is probably low risk, but that same chip on a public sidewalk is a bad idea no matter how fast you grab it. The rule gives a false sense of safety. Has anyone else looked into this or had a bad experience that proved it wrong?

My coworker in Phoenix still thinks you can't refreeze thawed meat and it drives me nuts

I showed him the USDA website last week that says it's safe if it thawed in the fridge. He saw the official info but still won't budge, saying his grandma told him different. It's been a whole month of this back and forth. Has anyone else had to prove this to someone who just won't listen?

My mom swore by the 'five second rule' for dropped food... I had to test it

She dropped a piece of toast on our kitchen floor in Austin last week and just picked it right up. I decided to do a real test with some sliced apple. I dropped one piece, left it for a second, and another piece for a full minute. I swabbed both with a home test kit I got online. Both pieces had the same amount of bacteria... it was gross. So the floor is dirty the instant something touches it. Does anyone have a different test they've done that proves this wrong?

Bought a $40 'detox' foot pad that promised to pull out toxins overnight

Saw an ad saying these sticky pads turn black from pulling junk out of your body. Used them for a week and they just got dark from sweat, my feet felt the same. Looked it up and found studies showing it's a total scam, the color change is a chemical reaction to moisture. Anyone else fall for this one or know other health myths that waste cash?

I just realized the '8 glasses of water a day' thing is a myth after tracking my intake for a week.

I logged everything I drank and ate for 7 days and found I only needed about 5 glasses of plain water because I get so much from food and other drinks, so has anyone else checked this for themselves?

I finally tested the 'five second rule' with my own kitchen floor

My roommate swore food was fine if you picked it up fast, so I dropped a piece of buttered toast on our tile. I let it sit for exactly four seconds, then sent a sample to a lab through a mail-in kit I found online. The results came back with a high bacteria count, basically the same as leaving it for a minute. Has anyone else done a real test on different surfaces like carpet or wood?

Rant: I argued with my friend for years that you can't get a cold from being cold.

He kept saying his mom in Chicago always warned him about wet hair in winter, but I thought it was just an old wives' tale. Then I read a study from Yale University that showed cold temperatures can weaken your nose's immune response, making you more likely to catch a rhinovirus. Has anyone else seen solid proof for or against this?

I always heard you could fix a slow drain with just hot water and vinegar...

My kitchen sink took 45 minutes to drain last week, so I tried that old trick for over an hour. It didn't budge, and I ended up needing a proper drain snake to clear a solid clog of grease and food. Is there any truth to the vinegar method, or is it just a total myth?

Watching a concrete pour in Seattle totally changed my mind about the '5-second rule'

The foreman dropped his sandwich on the wet cement, picked it up, and just threw it away without a second thought. So, is the 5-second rule actually a thing, or is it just a gross myth we all tell ourselves?

My buddy said my 'five second rule' logic was completely unsanitary

He pointed out that a dropped cracker in my kitchen last week landed right where my dog walks, so I looked it up and the myth is totally busted by science. Anyone have other food safety myths they used to believe?

Update on that 'you need to drink 8 glasses of water a day' thing

I tracked my intake for a month and felt the same as when I just drank when thirsty... has anyone else found this myth to be totally overblown?

My neighbor in apartment 4B said you can't refill a plastic water bottle more than twice

We were at the building's laundry room and she pointed at my bottle, telling me it starts leaking chemicals after a couple uses. I always thought that was just a rumor, but she was so sure. She said she read a study from a university in Michigan about it. Has anyone actually seen proof this is real, or is it just another scare story?

My friend swore you could put a hot pan under cold water to cool it fast

I was making dinner last night and had a cast iron skillet that was still really hot. My friend, who was over, told me to just run it under the tap to cool it off quick so I could wash it. I always heard that was a bad idea, but he was so sure. I did it anyway, and the pan made a loud ping sound and a tiny crack appeared on the side. It happened right after the water hit it. I looked it up, and it turns out the sudden temperature change can warp or crack cast iron, which is a total myth that it's safe. I felt pretty dumb for not trusting my gut. Now I have to figure out if this pan is still okay to use or if it's ruined. Has anyone else had a kitchen tool break from a myth they believed?

I spent $40 on a 'magnet test' kit to see if my stainless steel pans were real

I kept hearing that a magnet won't stick to good stainless steel cookware, so I bought a kit with different magnets online. Turns out, that's a total myth. My good All-Clad pan from years ago held a magnet just fine, and my cheap one from the discount store didn't. The magnet thing only tells you if it's a certain type of steel, not the quality. I wasted that money on a test that doesn't really mean anything for cooking. Has anyone else found a real way to tell if a pan is good before you buy it?

Shoutout to my friend who insisted you have to wait an hour after eating before swimming

I chose to ignore him and jumped in the pool right after lunch last Saturday, and nothing happened at all. Has anyone else actually gotten a cramp from this, or is it just something parents say?

Appreciation post: My mom's old 'microwave kills nutrients' theory finally got tested

She always said microwaving broccoli was the worst way to cook it, but I saw a study from a university last week that showed it's actually one of the best methods for keeping vitamins. I steamed some fresh florets for 3 minutes and the color stayed bright green. Has anyone else had a family food myth completely busted by science?

My neighbor told me my 'five second rule' was a total lie

She said bacteria transfers instantly, not after five seconds. I looked it up and she's right, a study from Rutgers proved it. Anyone else have a food myth they believed for way too long?

I finally got my mom to stop microwaving her metal spoons in her tea mug

Last month she was over at my place in Tacoma and I saw her do it again. I showed her a video from a science channel where they tested it with a thermal camera, and the sparks were real. She argued that 'nothing bad has happened in 40 years' but after seeing the metal actually heat up, she paused. Has anyone else had to convince a family member about a kitchen myth they swore by?

So I finally tested the '5 second rule' with my toddler's dropped toast... and the lab results came back.

I actually tried the 'five second rule' with a piece of cheese last week

I dropped a slice of cheddar on my kitchen floor, which I had mopped two days before, and left it for a solid five seconds. I picked it up, ate it, and got a stomach ache about three hours later. My friend always said the rule was a joke, but I thought a clean floor was safe. Now I'm wondering if the myth is just wrong, or if it depends on the surface. Has anyone else tested this and been totally fine, or did you get sick too?

A chat with my dad made me doubt the whole 'wait an hour after eating to swim' rule

We were at the lake last weekend and I stopped my nephew from going in the water right after lunch... you know, the old rule. My dad, who's 72, just laughed and said 'We never waited a minute back in the 60s, and no one drowned from a cramp.' He said it was just something parents said to get kids to sit still and digest so they wouldn't get sick in the pool. I looked it up later and the Red Cross basically says mild activity is fine, just don't go do a hard swim right after a huge meal. It hit different because he was there, living through the era when that myth took hold. Has anyone else had a family member completely debunk one of those childhood safety things you always believed?

Honestly, I just found out the whole 'wait an hour after eating to swim' thing is a total myth

The whole 'wait an hour after eating to swim' thing is nonsense

I was at the public pool in Springfield last weekend, and a lifeguard actually blew his whistle at a kid who jumped in maybe twenty minutes after finishing a hot dog. It got me thinking. I looked into it, and there's zero medical evidence for this old rule. The idea of getting a cramp and drowning is based on the thought your body sends blood to your gut to digest, leaving less for your muscles. But that's not how bodies work. You'd need to be doing an Olympic level workout to get a dangerous cramp from a bit of swimming on a full stomach. The Red Cross doesn't even teach this anymore. It's just something parents say to keep kids from puking in the pool. Has anyone else actually seen a real case of someone getting hurt from swimming right after a meal?

I thought you had to wait an hour after eating before swimming or you'd get cramps

My parents drilled that into me as a kid, and I followed it for like 20 years. Last summer at the lake, I ate a burger and jumped in after 10 minutes just to test it. Nothing happened, no cramps at all. I looked it up and found articles saying it's a total myth with no medical backing. But some people still swear by it, saying they've felt sick. Has anyone else actually gotten cramps from swimming right after a meal, or is it just an old wives' tale?

I always thought you had to wash chicken before cooking it, but my food safety class said the opposite.

For years, I rinsed raw chicken in the sink, thinking it got rid of germs. Then, about two months ago, I took a food handler course for a part-time job. The instructor, a health inspector, said washing chicken just sprays bacteria around your kitchen. She told us, 'The heat from cooking kills the bacteria, not the water.' Now I just pat it dry with a paper towel and cook it right away. Has anyone else had to unlearn this kitchen habit?