When I was a kid, my parents told me that everyday items are always filled with bacteria, such as banknotes, tabletops, keyboards, smartphones, floor (pick up your fallen food within 5 seconds or it will be infected with bacteria), I grew up told there are millions of bacteria under the fingernails all the time, is this really true? How can they be always there and survive that long if they are on the floor, banknotes etc.? They are living organisms, need to eat something, right? For my thinking there is nothing to eat on the banknotes normally. Can anyone bust this myth or confirm? Thanks in advance.
In: Biology
Yes bacteria are everywhere. The 5 second rule is bullshit though, bacteria don’t “climb on your food”, they either stick to it immediately or not at all depending on the surface of it.
Bacteria can survive a while without food. Depending on the type they might even have “hibernation states” that can survive for decades (anthrax for example)
Though most places do have enough food for them. Dust in a house for example is mostly human skin flakes. And some bacteria can also feed on sunlight like plants, and then other bacteria eat those.
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