Food safety is a delicate issue. Many people try to do everything possible to minimize contact between bacteria and food, but in the end it's a losing battle. Even something as harmless as blowing out the candles on a birthday cake can increase the presence of bacteria on the frosting by up to 1,400 percent, according to a study published by a team at Clemson University. One of the authors notes, however, that this increase does not represent a health risk except in very extreme cases.
A couple of candles, a lighter, "happy birthday, happy birthday", the birthday boy or girl blows, we all clap, and then we proceed to massacre the cake without mercy. Obviously there are some variations, but the general process follows that line. Most likely, before the cake, both the guest of honor and the attendees have consumed and/or handled other foods. That means there is an additional group present at the party... made up of bacteria.
Personally, I'm not someone who worries too much, and the fact that I'm writing these lines proves that I have survived every food poisoning, but misophobia is not an invention for those who suffer from it. Unfortunately, a recent study published by researchers at Clemson University does little to calm that anxiety.
The experiment
The team, led by Paul Dawson, a food safety professor, took an extruded polystyrene base, covered it with aluminum foil, applied frosting on the surface, and placed the candles. Before starting the tests, the participants ate pizza, in an attempt to simulate conditions similar to those at a birthday party.
After blowing out the candles, several "colonies" were created with the frosting, using agar plates. The average increase in bacteria was 1,400 percent, but Dawson acknowledges wide differences between one blow and another. Some people transferred few bacteria, however, in one specific case the count soared 120 times.
No reason to worry
Now, Dawson is convinced that a birthday cake should not cause problems. After all, our mouths are absolutely full of bacteria, and the vast majority are harmless. Moreover, if cakes were a "vector" of transmission, they would have disappeared from parties years ago. Dawson's recommendation is to use common sense and avoid the cake if the birthday person is visibly sick. Even so, the professor is a bit late, and the market has responded in its own way, with patents for "sanitary covers" for cakes.
