Contamination implications of eating peanut butter with a spoon
Say I'm eating peanut butter out of a jar with a spoon, thus presumably transferring some of my saliva into the bottle.
Some research indicates that this sort of double-dipping might be a health hazard if the food is then going to be consumed by others.
But are there any meaningful risks of contamination if I'm the only one who will be eating the peanut butter?
Best Answer
In addition to actually adding unwanted species, you're also adding moisture to a food that's otherwise very low in water. This will change its ability to support the growth of mould and bacteria in the damp bits.
If you polish off a jar in a few days and always eat the bit you previously got saliva on, I'm sure the risks will be vanishingly small. If you leave it for a couple of weeks after dipping in a well-licked spoon, I'm less confident.
As a practical measure it would seem easy to spoon out as much as you want into another container, then eat that. That also means you have the option of sharing it rather than having to refuse on the basis that you might as well have spat in it.
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Is it okay to eat peanut butter with a spoon?
When in doubt, Burak said, you can always go back to basics: "There are endless ways to incorporate peanut butter into a healthy diet, but just remember, you can stick a spoon in the jar and just eat plain and that's always good enough for me!"What happens if you eat from the same spoon?
If you share the same spoon during meal times you are transferring a lot of germs and bacteria through your saliva which takes refuge in your child s oral cavity. If you are not careful enough to clean her mouth properly, these bacteria can erode the enamel and set the stage for dental cavities.Does peanut butter grow bacteria?
Peanut butter is not a hospitable environment for most bacterial growth, but spores of bacteria and some strands of Salmonella can still reside in the inhospitable environment of peanut butter. It is important to be aware that peanut butter can still be contaminated with Salmonella Typhimurium[2].Is it OK to eat straight peanut butter?
Since peanut butter is very high in fat, a 3.5-ounce (100-gram) portion contains a hefty dose of 597 calories ( 4 ). Despite their high calorie content, eating moderate amounts of pure peanut butter or whole peanuts is perfectly fine on a weight-loss diet ( 11 ).Is Peanut Butter Bad for You?
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Answer 2
Even if you eat it all by yourself, and all the bacteria is sourced from you; you still have food safety concerns. As those bacteria might multiply in the jar, and start producing toxins as well.
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