According to a recent study done in England, the “five-second rule” may prove to be accurate. The myth states that if food is dropped on the ground but picked up before five seconds, it’s still safe to eat.

Junior Ye Eun Lee said, “I personally would not eat food that has been dropped on the ground but my mother would. If a piece of food falls on the table, she picks it up immediately and puts it back on her plate to eat.”

Anthony Hilton, a professor of microbiology at Aston University in England, said, “Consuming food dropped on the floor still carries an infection risk as it very much depends on which bacteria are present on the floor at the time. However, we found evidence that transfer from indoor flooring surfaces is incredibly poor with carpet actually posing the lowest risk of bacterial transfer onto dropped food.”

The experiment that Hilton conducted focused on the transfer of germs E. coli and staphylococcus aureus onto toast, pasta, a cookie and a sticky candy after the foods fell onto carpeted, laminate and tiled floors.

Senior Ashley Barley said, “My little sister picks dropped food off the ground all the time. She usually picks it up the same second she drops it. She has never gotten sick after eating the dropped food.”

Time on the floor and type of flooring affect the rate of transference of bacteria. The results of the study proved that a longer duration on the ground increases the likelihood of the transfer of germs and that germs are less likely to transfer on carpeted flooring.

Although the experiments are only preliminary, they prove that the five-second rule may be more than a myth.