When I was a kid growing up, the five second rule was one we all knew well and followed religiously.
After all it was a rare occasion that we would get candy or treats, so we weren’t about to let anything keep us from enjoying them. Especially the idea that there might be dirt or germs on it. I mean God made dirt and dirt don’t hurt, right?
I’m sure we’ve all said that at some point in our lives, at least I have.
Now that I’m a grown up and know a little something about germs I have also put certain “rule stipulations” into place. The five second rule just doesn’t always apply as easily as it did when I was a kid.
For example, if something sticky falls on the ground, like gum, the five second rule is completely void due to the fact that the germs that may have touched the gum have most certainly gotten stuck instantly and could not fallen off as they might have if it were something like a cookie.
Unfortunately the reality is that the five second rule is completely false! There was a study performed recently by San Diego State University that proved the five second rule can be a dangerous thing to live by. Knowing this now makes me want to be much more proactive in the way I keep my home.
I’ll admit it. I am not a super mom who washes her kitchen floor every week like I probably should, and I have gotten much more relaxed since my children are older and no longer crawl around on the floor looking for things to slobber all over.
I do try to keep my kitchen and bathroom fairly clean, and as germ free as possible. I love to keep a canister of Clorox wipes on my kitchen counter for quick clean ups. Knowing that I have wiped the counters down help me not stress out over the whole five second rule as much. I generally keep a spray bottle with water and bleach in it to clean different areas in my home quickly, and feel confident that they are indeed clean and disinfected.
I recently had a neat opportunity to talk with Samantha Bee who you may know most recently from The Daily Show.
“Samantha Bee was born and raised in Toronto Canada and understands that, yes, it’s very clean there. Having no appreciable skill set or professional aspirations, she turned to acting and found it compatible with her lazy lifestyle. She began her career by doing numerous commercial campaigns, as well as participating in the all-female sketch troupe The Atomic Fireballs. In 2003 she joined the cast of “The Daily Show with Jon Stewart” and now holds the title of Most Senior Correspondent, having systematically eliminated all those before her. In addition to her work on “The Daily Show,” Bee can be seen opposite her husband Jason Jones in the feature film “Cooper’s Camera,” “Motherhood” starring Uma Thurman and Woody Allen‘s “Whatever Works“. Samantha’s first book “I Know I Am But What Are You” will be released by Simon & Schuster in June 2010, and later this year will be seen in the films “Furry Vengeance” opposite Brendan Fraser and in 20th Century Fox’s “Date Night” opposite Steve Carell and Tina Fey.
Bee is the recipient of the 2005 Canadian Comedy Award for “Pretty Funny Female,” but nobody ever thought to send her the statue.
When Bee is not working she enjoys photographing her children in foolish outfits and correcting spelling errors on menus.”
She is a hilarious and totally down to earth mom. And after talking with her I can say that she has a way of not taking the little things in life so seriously. I love her attitude about parenting and life in general, which is basically “Don’t sweat the small stuff”.
One thing she does take seriously is the health of her family. Just like the rest of us, they just don’t have the time to get sick. So Samantha set out to learn how to keep the germs at bay and prevent the spread of germs that may already be lingering about.
Following the tips that she found on Simple and Surprising, she learned that you can keep things much cleaner and avoid unnecessary stress wondering if things are clean enough. Once she put the things she learned into practice it didn’t bother her as much if someone chose to use the five second rule.
I would love to help you on the journey to a cleaner and healthier lifestyle. So, I am giving away a Clorox Gift Basket ($20 value) to one of you filled with a variety of Clorox products!
To enter this giveaway, simply share a funny five second story or answer one of the following questions below in a comment.
Do you or someone in your family follow the 5-second rule?
Who’s more likely to follow the 5-second rule in your house?
What are the most popular items to 5-second rule?
Do you have a funny 5-second rule story?
This giveaway is open to all legal residents of the US ages 18 and older and will end on February 8th.
*This giveaway has ended.
There are several other Bloggers who are running this contest as well, so check them out and enter to up your odds of winning!
Consumer Queen
Plus Size Mommy
Bantering Blonde
Jane4Girls
Scraps of my Geek Life
Complicated Mama
Detroit Mommies
**Although the product for this giveaway were supplied to me free of charge from Clorox and I was compensated for this post, all opinions expressed are solely mine.
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One of my twins has a chornic illness, so we do not 5 second rule anything. I love Clorox products. I just wish there were more coupons for them. (Just in case the sponsor looks at the comments.)
denise_22315 at yahoo dot com
My dogs are fans of the 5 second, 10 second, 10 minute rules. My husband and I are a bit different, if it hits the floor it's toast. We own two dogs and a cat and no matter how much I might sweep or vacuum I still don't trust the floors!
My husband uses the 5 second rule and I used to as well but since becoming a mom I've cut down on that!
I use the 5 second rule, but my husband will use the 5 year rule. It's a good thing I'm around to keep him from eating too much garbage
faithcarpenter at gmail dot com
Do you or someone in your family follow the 5-second rule? Yes, The kids sometimes will pick things up from the floor, like popcorn, even tho I tell them all the time to just let the dogs get it. We have 4 dogs and a baby goat in the house right now and there is no way I would eat anything that hits the floor
We have 3 cats and a 2 month old dachsund if it hits the floor here, it goes in the trash. The only exception is if my back is turned. I do have 4 children
We use the 5-second rule unless the desirable item lands in the "Mouse Zone". Since we live in the sticks and seem to frequently be giving free rent tolittle grey critters (albeit, only until we find them) we count off limits any area in the kitchen that the mouse might use as his path (i.e. under the cabinet, around the panty, etc.) Gross, huh??
Funny my husband never follow the the 5 second rule but he is a man he will eat anything he drops no matter how low is sits there LOL. I al ways get rid of what ever I drop.
It's kind of a judgment call for me. When something falls, I tend to do an instantaneous assessment of the various factors. Just when was the last time I mopped the kitchen floor? How badly do I really want that cookie (piece of chocolate, delectable treat)…?
I use the 5 second rule, mainly for dry things that are easy pickup.
When I was younger & perfect, I followed this rule. I've abandoned it as I've matured. My husband still follows it.
My kids love to test out the 5 second rule. EXCEPT when we're eating peas. They'll leave those on the floor forever. They have no desire to eat them in the first place. Sometimes I wonder if some hit the floor intentionally.
My husband is the person who follows the 5 sec (and sometimes longer) rule!
Chocolate is not covered under the 5 second rule. It's covered under the 5 minute rule!
My husband & I disagree about the 5 second rule all the time. To me, there is no 5 second rule… if it falls on the floor, it gets thrown away! My husband on the other hand thinks the 5 second rule can be stretched to 10 minutes or however fast the dog can get to it! I'm trying to teach my children that MY way is the right way!
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