The so called “five second rule” ,or the idea that you could still eat food that had been dropped on the floor if you picked it up within five seconds, was first disproved by high school student Jillian Clarke during an internship at the University of Illinois in 2003.

While most of us would be happy to admit to the fact that we do not participate in the five second rule, the truth is, we are probably not all as up to par on kitchen sanitation as we really should be. It is likely that you have stuck a finger in the batter, or licked a spaghetti sauce spoon before re stirring the pot. A study published in the Journal of Applied Microbiology indicates that between 20 to 30 percent of viruses can be readily transferred from a fingertip to a glass surface, like that of a mobile device’s touch screen!

While it is certainly sometimes over looked,you can see that kitchen sanitation is an important precaution that should be taken in order to keep both you and your loved ones healthy. While you do not need to be as aggressive as developing food safety guidelines for your home kitchen, or creating some sort of wacky kitchen sanitation check list, executing proper kitchen hygiene both yourself, and teaching food safety for kids, can make all the difference.

The most basic food handling safety precautions and kitchen safety tips you and your family can take is to properly wash your hands! Wash your hands before and after handling food, using the bathroom, after eating, coughing, or handling things such as door handles,and you will dramatically decrease germ exposure.
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