How dirty is your kitchen?

If the recent NSF study is to be believed it is the absolute dirtiest place in your home – a danger to yourself and all who reside with or visit you. Salmonella, E. Coli, Staph and the like are growing strong in your fridge, in your can opener and, in some cases, right there on your counter in plain site.
No surprise, critics have come out of the woodwork to question and poke holes in this article. They have been accused of poor science, lack of detail in their report, publishing something just to get their name out there and many things in between. All by respected scientists, some of whom I’m honored to call friend. Others are arguing that, while the critics may be correct, anything that gets people to understand they should clean their kitchen is worth the effort. Really – clean my kitchen – hmmmm, I’ll have to consider that.
I do admit that I fall on the survival of the fittest end of the survival chain (although my kitchen is for the most part clean). I’ve always believed that immunity is best built through exposure and having raised more than my fair share of infants to adulthood (albeit none in human form) I think that I can support that view with solid data. I was immediately wary of the antimicrobial movement and threw the towel in when they introduced antimicrobial q-tips, which thankfully have since gone away. Seriously people – rub a little dirt in it and get back out there.
So – what’s your take? Can your kitchen be too clean? Does survival of the masses depend upon hand sanitizer at every corner and self opening bathroom doors (don’t get me started on that)? Or are you, like me, willing to accept a bit of risk, follow the 5 second rule and spend time worrying about other imminent disasters?
If you’d like to read the whole bit – please go here:
The Germiest Place in your House