The five second rule has been around or a long time, growing up it is not uncommon at the school cafeteria to have seen a peer drop some food and yell “five second rule” and proceed to eat it. This five second rule has been put in the spotlight many times including CNN and BBC posting articles about the five second rule that talk about what happens within that five seconds or less that the food is on the floor. It was found that it is unlikely that one will get sick from eating food after it hits the floor, but depending what was there prior to the food touching that surface it is a still possible. In result it is strongly suggested to just simply throw away any food that touches the floor, but obviously it is easier said than done with so many kids doing it. After conducting a random survey at the University, the University food services might find value seeing how students are doing this everyday at school and take this information and warn students about the possible dangers of eating food when it has touched the floor.

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Through this random survey there was some interesting findings that were clear in the interviews with the different students. Despite the students explaining that their biggest influences growing up were not his or her own siblings, after interviewing these four students it is clear that those who grew up with a sister or sisters did not practice the five second rule, while the students that grew up with a brother or brothers practiced it with no hesitation. Another interesting finding between those who do eat food after it touches the floor is that all these students stated that it was only dry food that they did this with food items like chips, crackers and more. Campus food services would find this interesting because it knows how chips are a part of the block meal plans. Out of the many another important finding through the interviews was those who practiced the five second rule preferred to eat with their hands instead of utensils.

In this small survey 50 percent of students surveyed admit to eating food that has touched the floor. Campus food services should take the opportunity to inform students about the possibility of getting sick from what has been on the floor before the food one drops.