Three second rule fine to use on highly processed foods

Parents who use the three second rule can relax if they are dropping food high in salt or sugar content.

Though quite possibly the worst kinds of food to give your children, if you drop it on the floor it is safer to eat than natural food.

This is because harmful bacteria has less chance of surviving on processed foods.

Research carried out by Manchester Metropolitan University on behalf of Vileda tested out cooked pasta, ham, a plain biscuit, dried fruit and bread and jam – to find out whether the three second rule was safe to use.

The bread and jam and ham was fine when tested at 3, 5 and even 10 second intervals. But the dried fruit and cooked pasta was found to contain signs of the bacteria klebsiella.

Nothing was detected on the biscuit because of its low level of water.

Interestingly, when testing out a used child’s dummy, E. coli was found on the dummy before it even fell on the floor.

Lindsey Taylor, of Vileda recommends keeping your floor clean by regular mopping, but also warned that Pseudomonas is often present on mops and can be spred during cleaning.

She said: “Mop heads need to be replaced regularly – every three months ideally – yet often people leave this until closer to a year. Ideally, floors should be mopped once a day yet a third of Brits only mop once a week.”