You know how some things are good in moderation? My wife insists that her grandmother, or was it her aunt, used to insist that you had to eat a pound of dirt a year. That turns out to be just a little more than an ounce a month. You don't probably need to run around with a dustpan and a broom to keep up with that average.
This brings to mind the five-second rule. You know the one: where if a cookie or a bit of salami falls on the floor, and you're able to snap it up before those dreaded five seconds elapse, you're still sitting pretty with an extra piece of salami or cookie that could have just been so much detritus. Germs and bacteria are notoriously lazy and slow on the uptake, especially when matters of gravity are concerned. An object at rest tends to stay at rest unless acted on my an outside force, and as long as that object happens to be a particularly quiet piece of chocolate cake, all those microorganisms will just lay there. Single cell organisms lack motivation. That's why you've got that five second cushion. Or maybe I don't understand the science the way I should. The Mythbusters guys explain it best. Even though they busted that myth, it gave Jamie and Adam a chance to get their pound of dirt. Good for them.
As long as you remember to wash your hands before you eat that pound of dirt, you'll be fine. Just don't use antibacterial soap. It turns out that Triclosan, a chemical found in antibacterial soap has been shown in studies to cause hormonal imbalance in animals. That's worse than a little dirt, right? It also turns out that Triclosan may also be contributing to the rise of deadly, antibiotic-resistant superbugs. Superbugs? They won't just jump on that dropped potato chip, they're going to climb up into the cupboard, tear that bag of Lay's open with their genetically engineered razor sharp teeth and then go looking for some dip.
Better to just go ahead and take your chances with a little bit of dirt. Nice, gritty, healthy dirt.
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