MANILA, Philippines — Let’s admit it, snacking gives us immediate relief and comfort from all the stress we have to deal with. So much so that it has become one of our go-to coping mechanisms, especially during this pandemic.
While it’s okay to indulge in our favorite snacks, we may have habits that don’t adhere to safe snacking practices. Now, more than ever, we need to be aware of them and teach kids these Rebisco Hand EATiquette tips.
Here are 4 unsafe snacking habits we need to start changing. Remember, the key to snacking happily and safely is in our hands—literally!
1. Believing the 5-second rule
“Pwede pa yan, wala pang 5 seconds!”
The 5-second rule has been our favorite excuse whenever we drop food on the floor and still want to pick it up and eat it. But did you know, this 5-second rule is a myth?
Once it hits the floor, bacteria can already attach itself to food, so it doesn’t matter how fast you pick it up.
Just because the floor looks clean, doesn’t automatically mean it’s pristine. Germs and bacteria can still survive on the surface, which means they can contaminate food in an instant!
Rebisco Hand EATiquette #1: Aside from being more careful not to drop food on the floor, it’s best to play it safe when you do. As the rule says: when in doubt, toss it out!
2. Opening snacks with your mouth
Many of us are guilty of this snacking habit! It’s easier, right? However, we need to stop doing this because germs can live on the packaging of our snacks. By opening them with our mouths, we’re risking having direct contact with germs, which is far from hygienic.
Rebisco HandEATiquette #2: First, sanitize the packaging before you even start snacking. Open snacks with your hands or with a clean pair of scissors. It’s much safer this way and it can lessen your contact with germs.
3. Mindless munching while multitasking
Do you or your kids work on your tasks with a pack of peanuts, a bag of chips, or your favorite cupcake within reach?
Snacking while working makes contamination easier since our gadgets and other things may not be sanitized thoroughly and regularly. So whenever we eat while using these objects, we directly transfer the germs from them straight to our mouths!
Rebisco Hand EATiquette #3: Be more mindful of the surfaces you touch. Aside from sanitizing the things you use, it is best not to use the same hand for eating and doing other tasks. Better yet, take breaks instead of multitasking to avoid contamination of your snacks.
4. Sharing is caring
We’re used to the saying that sharing is caring, but this may not be the case, especially when an airborne virus threatens to infect us.
It’s normal to get excited to share food and pass snacks around during bonding moments. However, be mindful that practices like double-dipping and sharing food, in general, come with certain risks nowadays.
Aside from not knowing whether the people we share our snacks with washed their hands prior, they may also have unsafe snacking habits, like the ones mentioned above!
Rebisco Hand EATiquette #4: Share food, not germs! To make snacking safer, you can prepare separate plates of snacks for each person instead of sharing just one bowl. This way, we can all be sure that germs won’t be passed around.
Follow the Rebisco Hand EATiquette for safe snacking!
With germs all around us and other diseases looming, this isn’t the time to let our guard down. One of the best ways we can keep ourselves, our kids, and everyone around us healthy is by keeping our hands clean.
Rebisco reminds us that practicing safe snacking habits is of the utmost importance. Changing our unsafe snacking habits is a way we can avoid getting sick from germs, which can help keep us and our loved ones healthy.
So the next time you open a bag of chips, munch on peanuts, or snack on some cupcakes, remember to wash your hands first and observe the Rebisco #HandEATiquette habits so you can keep snacking safely and happily!
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