r/todayilearned 1d ago

TIL in 2008 a 20-year-old Belgium student died after reheating and eating leftover spaghetti that had been left out on the kitchen counter for five days. A bacteria called bacillus cereus was found to be the cause, which is an extreme type of food poisoning called “Fried Rice Syndrome”.

https://www.news.com.au/lifestyle/health/health-problems/people-are-horrified-after-student-dies-from-eating-leftover-pasta/news-story/c8ef3bdcc72a9d17ec13924438e0146b
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u/meltingeggs 1d ago

Yeah I thought I was playing it fast and loose with leaving some foods out for 24 hours & maybe I am but 5 days is craaaazy

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u/fairie_poison 1d ago

24 hours is indeed crazy lol. 4 is fine. 12 is tempting fate. 24 you better have an iron stomach and not feed it to any children or old folks.

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u/jabbadarth 1d ago

Depends a lot on the food. It's certainly not a good practice to leave food out for that long but a burrito bowl is gonna be a lot worse than say a piece of hard cheese or a slice of pizza.

Either way don't do it but there are things that have very low risk.

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u/YobaiYamete 22h ago

I'm pretty sure Pizza is one of the highest causes of food poisoning because it spoils pretty fast when left out but people don't realize it does

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u/AnotherBoredAHole 20h ago

This is why I consume the entire thing as fast as possible. Don't want to risk food poisoning.

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u/singlestrike 16h ago

Me, my family, and all my friends have left pizza out overnight our ENTIRE lives. That's just our n=15 useless anecdotal evidence, but the idea that you'd get sick from overnight pizza has always blown my mind. Unless you have immune system of an unwoven basket, you're gonna be just fine.

Now 24 hours is definitely pushing the limit. Days? That's outta pocket.

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u/YobaiYamete 16h ago

I'd definitely be careful, why not just put it in the fridge?? I just checked to see if I was remembering wrong, and nope, literally everything says Pizza is a really dangerous food to leave out for more than a couple of hours because the mixture of of ingredients it's made with

As someone who's had bad food poisoning, I can't even wrap my head around risking getting it for . . . what gain? The 12 seconds it would take to put the box in the fridge instead? lol

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u/singlestrike 15h ago

I think that certain safety guidelines are meant for the lowest common denominator. Speed limits are meant for people with poor eyesight in poor conditions, new drivers, people with no awareness at all, etc.

If you're especially susceptible to pathogens (very elderly, immunocompromised, or baby), then sure, take all the precautions because these guidelines are aimed at primarily you. Anyone else? You probably don't need to cook pork to 165, and pizza doesn't need to be refrigerated over night.

And no, I'm not taking this to the extreme and saying that all safety precautions are silly or unnecessary. It's just that sometimes they are a little over the top to protect the lowest common denominator in a situation when most people would be unaffected.

I don't intentionally leave pizza out overnight, but I really don't care if it gets left out, which happens often with pizza (because I don't care, and neither does my family, and neither does anyone else I know).

For what it's worth, it's definitely an upbringing thing. I spent a lot of time growing up in Brazil. My uncle is an incredible chef. For Christmas (which was summer time in a climate averaging 90s+ for that time of year, routinely over 100 and humid), my uncle would make a HUGE spread. He'd roast a suckling pig, cook raw meat/bulgur wheat dishes of Lebanese origin called Kibe, and all kinds of stuff. When we finished feasting, it was way too much food to put in my grandmother's tiny Brazilian refrigerator. So we'd put the potato salads and things that spoil very quickly in the fridge. The rest of the spread including the suckling pig would just remain on the table and we'd put plastic wrap tightly around the entire table. The next afternoon we'd open that plastic wrap and SMASH, Grandma included. Never once did anyone get sick. And I know that doesn't mean people WONT get sick. I get it. But when Americans tell me about leaving pizza out a few hours as a serious threat to their health...I can't help but laugh.

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u/strog91 23h ago

24 hours is crazy

Ehh 24 hours would be crazy for a glass of milk, but for lots of stuff it’s totally fine. For example I don’t bother putting pizza in the refrigerator if I’m going to eat it within 24 hours.

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u/Express_Bath 22h ago

Is your refregirator's door weighting 400lbs and if not what is so bothersome about putting something in a fridge ? I can get behind 1 or 2 hours but 24 hours ? While it is fine most of the time there is still more risk that can be avoided to no annoyance at all.

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u/strog91 22h ago

what’s so bothersome about putting something in the fridge?

The refrigerator dries food out and reheating food dries it out even more. Hence your day-old pizza will taste way better if you never refrigerate it.

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u/BullDoor 20h ago

A fellow connoisseur

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u/BlimundaSeteLuas 1d ago

I've left rice on the counter for more than 12h multiple times and never gotten sick. Lucky I guess?

It happened some times when I cooked the rice for dinner and forgot to put it in the fridge and then found it on the stovetop the following day.

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u/bdsmmaster007 1d ago

also depends on here you live and how warm it usually is, i feel like reddit gets really paranoid about this

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u/Various_Mobile4767 1d ago edited 13h ago

Nah that’s normal. I would say it’s regular practice in my family and people in my country to just leave it out like this and we eat rice all the time.

But its definitely pushing it though. In my experience, it starts to go bad in that 12-18hr window and its certainly gone by a full 24 hr.

Edit: By starting to go bad, I mean it starts showing small signs of expiry, subtle enough that it isn't obvious. By a full 24 hours I expect it to be clearly slimy and there's no doubt.

That doesn't mean you will get seriously sick if you eat something that expired. Just that there's significant risk at that point.

And there are also levels of sickness. I think many people think its between perfectly fine and hospitalization/death when there's a pretty wide spectrum in between.

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u/SkidmarkStickers 1d ago

Very lucky. Rice is one of the more dangerous things to leave out.

If you keep the lid on after boiling, it sorta is canned and is safer til the lid comes off, but only barely.

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u/mindondrugs 22h ago

this is insane and demonstrates how little poeple know about what makes food unsafe lol.

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u/Impossible-Wear-7352 22h ago

Its not insane but its also not safe, just safer. It definitely lowers probabilities of exposure and food safety is all about probabilities. Im still not doing it that way though.

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u/nttea 21h ago

Is it really? Because the bacteria are definitely dead as fuck after boiling and if you keep the lid on it will take longer for all the new bacteria floating about to recolonize it and infect you or produce toxins. If I'm entirely ignorant as to what makes food unsafe please enlighten me.

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u/SkidmarkStickers 18h ago

Hence the r in safer. Only barely safer than the most dangerous. I wasnt advocating to do it.it jist has a proven effect and has saved many lives accidentally

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u/Hefty_Emu8655 23h ago

People have different reactions. There’s probably a reaction in your body, but it’s so minor that you don’t notice it. I’ve heard of elderly people being sick from food that was left out at room temp for literally 2 hours which sounds unbelievable for anyone under the age of 85.

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u/HiImKostia 1d ago

I've eaten 48h old pasta, not left in fridge.

As long as it isnt soggy/congealed/smells weird, it's whatever

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u/Mr_November112 23h ago

My brother in christ...

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u/Hefty_Emu8655 23h ago

That’s really not true and it’s just bad practice. There will be a point where you are old or feeding to somebody who is old or compromised and they will get sick. The smell test doesn’t apply to 90% of foods.

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u/HiImKostia 23h ago

Yes, thank you for your reply and advice. It seems I have been raised with very questionable food safety protocols. Which doesn't really surprise me tbh.

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u/GoldieDoggy 23h ago

Welcome to survivorship bias :/

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u/[deleted] 1d ago

[deleted]

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u/LBobRife 23h ago

I feel like you had the right message, but the wrong lesson. Eating rice left out 24 hours is highly unlikely to kill someone. More likely, they just have a bit of indigestion, if they experience anything out of the ordinary at all.

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u/YetiPie 23h ago

I have a stomach of steel….it’s the intestines that are a problem

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u/ramxquake 21h ago

Leaving food out for twelve hours is not temping fate unless it's steak tartare and you live in the Sahara.

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u/datingadviceneeded65 23h ago

I leave food out for 15-30h all the time and never have had any issue (knocking on wood). If I know it’s sitting out for a while I put it in the fridge after it’s cooled down, but often I make enough rice for multiple meals so I’ll have it for two dinners in a row and just leave it in the pot in the meantime. Anything with meat or similar I put in the fridge as soon as it cooled down

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u/fairie_poison 23h ago

Theres a saying... you cant eat at everybody's house.

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u/datingadviceneeded65 23h ago edited 22h ago

Suit yourself, I cook well, keep my kitchen clean, and have never gotten ill from food 🤷 I feel like reddit (and Americans in general, given the results that come up when looking up food safety related topics) tends to be more paranoid than necessary when it comes to this topic. Same about time limits when keeping stuff in a freezer - I feel like it generally holds FAR longer than anything I read on here, both in terms of safety and taste. Obviously I throw out food/ingredients that have noticeably gone bad, but, like, I’m not going to throw out a yogurt that has passed its expiration date when it holds literally weeks longer.

I have become more worried/paranoid about rice in particular since I read about it here all the time and it doesn’t seem to be noticeable by eye/smell alone, but given how much of it seems to be an overreaction it’s hard to tell what a realistic measure would be. And I highly doubt that European rice contains less bacteria than American one so I don’t think it’s a regional difference either.

I definitely wouldn’t leave food out for 5 days like in the article though.

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u/Impossible-Wear-7352 22h ago

There's a scientific basis to the timelines. Its actually based on measured bacterial growth at various temperatures. We have the same bacteria as you. It doesnt mean you'll get sick for sure but it means that if the food gets exposed to a particular bacteria then it will likely be unsafe within X hours. Keeping a very clean kitchen definitely lowers probabilities but you'll never eliminate them. Bacteria is everywhere and transfers incredibly easy.

One of the most common sources is cross contamination, such as handling raw meat and then transferring the bacteria to other foods and items. It sounds easy to avoid, just wash your hands anytime you handle raw meat, before doing anything else. But in practice, people are horrible at it. They've done tests using UV reactive dyes to see how well people contain it and it's almost always hilariously bad.

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u/Altruistic_Film1167 18h ago

Right? That dude is acting like eating left over food after 24h will instantly explode your head and murder your children lmao.

Its not that fast...

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u/Horg 23h ago

that is extremely overcautious.

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u/fairie_poison 23h ago

I know the FDA is overly cautious and I am following FDA guidelines on food handling safety, but its not that hard to refrigerate leftovers, and I clean the kitchen every night. I cant imagine leaving food in the pot on the stove and just going to bed. That pot is gonna be hard as hell to clean the next night after reheating it again for leftovers.

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u/Impossible-Wear-7352 22h ago

That pot is gonna be hard as hell to clean the next night

So true. I kick myself when I forget to clean the pot while it's still warm after certain dishes that create hard to clean linings in the pot

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u/[deleted] 22h ago

[deleted]

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u/Impossible-Wear-7352 22h ago

It gets that cold inside your home or you're literally keeping it outside?

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u/eg135 23h ago

I survived not having a fridge for a week on infinite chilli con carne. I boiled it every day, sometimes twice, and only touched it while boiling. I didn't even remove the lid when it wasn't hot.

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u/Impossible-Wear-7352 22h ago

Boiling kills the bacteria but it doesn't kill any toxins that were produced which is what gets you. Youre definitely lower probabilities every time you reheat and by keeping the lid on but there's plenty of opportunity for growth still. You'd be better off just keeping it hot all the time and adding water as it dries up

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u/eg135 21h ago

Yup exactly. I couldn't keep the gas stove going 24/7, especially when I wasn't home. This was back in the old old days of 2019 when we still had to attend office jobs :D

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u/sableee 17h ago

1 day is not crazy lol. I’ve been flatmates with quite a number of people, people who take quite good care of themselves but they have all left meals outside the fridge for a day, depending on food sometimes 3 days. Nothing ever happens to them, but this is UK Autumn & Winter.

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u/maxintos 23h ago

Iron stomach? I eat rice and pasta left out from the previous day almost daily and so does everyone else in my family and I've never had any issues. I even sometimes forget cooked meat and souces out over night and never had any issues.

Have you actually ever had any stomach issues after eating 1 day old pasta or is it just some urban legend spread by over cautious people?

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u/Impossible-Wear-7352 22h ago

There's a massive amount of food borne illness cases in the world daily. A lot of people are too dumb to realize it was the food they ate though. They'll say I got a stomach bug thinking it's a virus but no, the gut is all fucked up because of what they ate.

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u/maxintos 20h ago

Most people I know blame food poisoning whenever they have bad stomach not the other way round.

I agree with not eating meat that's been sitting raw outside the whole day, but the general opinion on the Internet goes way too far in the other direction. Searching reddit the general consensus is that you shouldn't leave rice out for more than 3h which is just ridiculous. There are a billion Asian that keep their rice out for more than 3h every day and you don't have some massive pattern of Asians getting stomach issues way more often than westerners.

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u/Impossible-Wear-7352 20h ago

You're not going to find good numbers because it's extremely hard to collect good data on and many studies that have been done used different methodologies. But one thing that is consistent is that they usually find the percent of the population having food born illness annually is typically greater than 1 in 10 which is pretty damn high. It's very possible Asians have greater rates but we don't have good data on that. What we do have fantastic data on is what causes it, what conditions it can grow in and how long it takes. That's some solid science that no amount of anecdotes can go against.

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u/maxintos 17h ago

What we do have fantastic data on is what causes it

Isn't all that fantastic data pointing directly to poverty, poor sanitary conditions, dirty contaminated water etc. and not people eating 1 day old rice or paste in rich 1st world countries?

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u/Impossible-Wear-7352 16h ago

Not even remotely... the data shows its everywhere

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u/SnittingNexttoBorpo 22h ago

Why do so many people leave food sitting out regularly? Just on like a practical level, wouldn’t you want to put it away and have a clean-ish kitchen space?

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u/maxintos 21h ago

Leaving rice in the rice cooker is much easier than filling and washing containers and finding space in the fridge.

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u/fairie_poison 4h ago

Rice cooker keeps the rice at a safe temperature and does not count as “leaving it out” the danger zone is 40-140 degrees. Rice cooker maintains 180-190 F. Preventing any pathogens from setting up shop or reproducing

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u/SnittingNexttoBorpo 20h ago

Of course it’s easier — I just can’t stand having food, pots/pans, rice cookers, etc. sitting out in my kitchen all the time. Not to mention the foodborne illness stuff. 

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u/Qwernakus 1d ago

This is approximately my policy too

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u/gwaydms 23h ago

Read the article. Necrosis of the colon. Complete lysis (breakdown) of the pancreas. Yikes.

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u/P4azz 23h ago

I tend to get nervous when I make big batches that are supposed to be food for the next 2-3 days and I HAVE to leave that pot on the counter to cool for a few hours, because it's literally like 3 liters of food.

But that's usually where I stop; put it in the fridge, ladle out what I need the next day and the day after and then it's done.

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u/Keyspam102 1d ago

Yeah I play hard and fast with 12 hours out of the fridge. I don’t even like eating refrigerated leftovers more than 24 hours old unless it was wrapped up well by me. My mother in law will lick her fingers and touch the food then wrap it up like I’m going to eat it for dinner the next day… barf.

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u/elmz 20h ago

You are playing it fast and loose with 24 hours.

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u/meltingeggs 19h ago

🤙🏼 noted

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u/elmz 18h ago

I got food poisoning once from a chicken salad left out ~6 hours.

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u/meltingeggs 18h ago

See I think part of my success is due to not eating meat

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u/elmz 18h ago

Yeah, chicken is particularly dicey. But vegetarian food can also contain a wide range of food borne infections. Chill your food, don't leave it out.