Risky or Not?

A short podcast about everyday risks from germs

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A greasy cook licks his fingers while holding a steak over a grill. He wears a stained apron and chef’s hat. A young girl with long black hair looks on in horror, her mouth open in shock. The kitchen appears grimy, with a burger on a shelf in the background.

771. Eating Steaks Flipped With Licked Bare Hands

May 14, 2025 by Don Schaffner

Dr. Don and Professor Ben talk about the risks from eating steaks flipped by someone who has licked their bare hands before flipping.

Dr. Don - not risky 👍🏼
Professor Ben - not risky 👍🏼

  • 327. Chicken Soup Unrefrigerated for More Than 6 Hours — Risky or Not?
  • 342. Bedroom Pasta — Risky or Not?
  • 316. Using Cups to Scoop Water Out of a Shared Bowl — Risky or Not?
May 14, 2025 /Don Schaffner
Cross-contamination, Norovirus

DALL·E - A person washing a very dirty mop in a public bathroom sink. The bathroom is slightly run-down, with tiled walls and a large mirror above the sink.

640. Using a Sink That's Been Used to Wash a Stadium Mop

July 12, 2024 by Don Schaffner

Dr. Don and Professor Ben talk about the risks of washing your hands in a sink used for washing a stadium mop.

Dr. Don - not risky 👍🏼
Professor Ben - not risky 👍🏼

  • Vomiting as a Symptom and Transmission Risk in Norovirus Illness: Evidence from Human Challenge Studies | PLOS ONE
  • The handwash station: friend or fiend? - ScienceDirect
  • Handwashing sinks as the source of transmission of ST16 carbapenem-resistant Klebsiella pneumoniae, an international high-risk clone, in an intensive care unit - ScienceDirect
  • SN 58 - Availability of and Access to Toilets and Hand Washing Facilities | NC DOL
  • Act to Allow Food Stands to Provide Tables and Chairs for Customers to use while Consuming Drinks or Food upon the Premises.
  • Merch — Risky or Not?
  • Prevalence of Human Noroviruses in Commercial Food Establishment Bathrooms - ScienceDirect
  • Presence of human noroviruses on bathroom surfaces: a review of the literature - PubMed
July 12, 2024 /Don Schaffner
Mop, Bathroom, Norovirus, Handwashing, Cross-contamination

DALL·E - An elderly man stands in a grocery store, next to a large pot of soup, eating soup directly from a ladle with no bowl in his hands…

582. Soup After Someone Has Tasted That Soup From the Ladle in a Grocery Store Hot Bar

February 28, 2024 by Don Schaffner

Dr. Don and Professor Ben talk about the risks of getting soup after someone has tasted that soup from the ladle in a grocery store hot bar.

Dr. Don - not risky 👍🏼
Professor Ben - not risky 👍🏼

  • @ask_aubry • This is why I have trust issues. • Threads
  • Serving Up Safe Buffets | FDA
  • Minimally Invasive Saliva Testing to Monitor Norovirus Infection in Community Settings | The Journal of Infectious Diseases | Oxford Academic
  • An Outbreak of Norovirus Infection from Shellfish Soup Due to Unforeseen Insufficient Heating During Preparation - PubMed
February 28, 2024 /Don Schaffner
Hot holding, Soup, Cross-contamination, Norovirus

466. Drinking From a Wine Spit Bucket

June 02, 2023 by Don Schaffner

Dr. Don and Professor Ben talk about the risks of drink wine from a spit bucket like in the movie Sideways.

Dr. Don - not risky 👍🏼
Professor Ben - not risky 👍🏼

  • Sideways (2004) - IMDb
  • Thomas Haden Church - Wikipedia
  • Detection of Norovirus in Saliva Samples from Acute Gastroenteritis Cases and Asymptomatic Subjects: Association with Age and Higher Shedding in Stool - PMC
June 02, 2023 /Don Schaffner
Wine, Spit, Norovirus

421. Beer Kegs in the Bathroom

February 17, 2023 by Don Schaffner

Dr. Don and Professor Ben talk about the risks of storing unused beer kegs in the bathroom of a restaurant,

Dr. Don - not risky 👍🏼
Professor Ben - not risky 👍🏼

  • Don Schaffner 🦠 on Twitter: "@RyanMorey @Nowooski @benjaminchapman But also most definitely not a best practice. Maybe we should queue this one up for revisiting on risky or not, what do you think @benjaminchapman?" / Twitter
  • Food Safety Talk 189: Guerrilla Sous Vide Is A Go (Live from Renton Technical College) — Food Safety Talk
February 17, 2023 /Don Schaffner
Beer, Bathroom, Norovirus, Cross-contamination

317. Preparing Food in a Bitchen

June 20, 2022 by Don Schaffner

Dr. Don and Professor Ben talk about the risks of preparing food in a bitchen (combination bathroom/kitchen).

Dr. Don - risky ☣️
Professor Ben - risky ☣️

  • Cholera has been eradicated everywhere but this house. #westvirginiacheck #zillowtastrophe #realestate
  • Norovirus Outbreak Traced to Reusable Grocery Bag
  • Lifting the lid on toilet plume aerosol: A literature review with suggestions for future research - PMC
  • Yes, Toilet Spray After You Flush Includes Poop Particles | SELF
June 20, 2022 /Don Schaffner
Fecal plume, Cross-contamination, Norovirus

316. Using Cups to Scoop Water Out of a Shared Bowl

June 17, 2022 by Don Schaffner

Dr. Don and Professor Ben talk about the risks of using cups to scoop water out of a shared bowl when it's really hot out.

Dr. Don️ - not risky 👍🏼
Professor Ben - risky ☣️

  • chefcollinsevents on Twitter: "Helping someone do a event in city and we are using cups to scoop water out of this bowl to drink and we argued if #riskyornot @benjaminchapman @bugcounter (I think it’s fine it’s 90degrees out) https://t.co/3bVatuAtHn" / Twitter
  • Detection of Norovirus in Saliva Samples from Acute Gastroenteritis Cases and Asymptomatic Subjects: Association with Age and Higher Shedding in Stool - PMC
  • Norovirus Outbreaks Reported to NoroSTAT, Figure | CDC
  • Did You Just Eat That?: Two Scientists Explore Double-Dipping, the Five ... - Paul Dawson, Brian Sheldon - Google Books
June 17, 2022 /Don Schaffner
Water, Cross-contamination, Norovirus, Saliva, Double dipping
170.png

170. Using Hand Sanitizer to Prevent the Spread of Norovirus

July 12, 2021 by Don Schaffner

Dr. Don and Professor Ben talk about the risks of using hand sanitizer to prevent the spread of norovirus.

Dr. Don - risky ☣️
Professor Ben - risky ☣️

  • Improved Inactivation of Nonenveloped Enteric Viruses and Their Surrogates by a Novel Alcohol-Based Hand Sanitizer | Applied and Environmental Microbiology
  • GOJO Industries Inc - 599132 - 01/17/2020 | FDA
  • FSIC says handwashing is best way to mitigate gastro risks | Food Safety News
  • Effectiveness of Liquid Soap and Hand Sanitizer against Norwalk Virus on Contaminated Hands | Applied and Environmental Microbiology
  • PURELL® VF481™ Hand Sanitizer Gel - DISCONTINUED | 5496-04
  • Bathroom-stored grocery bag fingered in norovirus outbreak | CIDRAP
July 12, 2021 /Don Schaffner
Norovirus, Hand Sanitizer
122.png

122. Frozen Berry Smoothies

March 22, 2021 by Don Schaffner

Dr. Don and Professor Ben talk about the risks from frozen berry smoothies.
Dr. Don - not risky 👍🏼
Professor Ben - not risky 👍🏼

  • Indrani on Twitter
  • 109. Uncooked Frozen Carrots* — Risky or Not?
  • Microbiological Surveillance Sampling: FY 19-20 Frozen Berries (Strawberries, Raspberries and Blackberries) | FDA
  • Farm to fork quantitative microbial risk assessment for norovirus on frozen strawberries - ScienceDirect
  • FSAI warns of virus risk in imported frozen berry supply chain | Food Safety News
  • Food Safety Talk 156: Rank the Kato's — Food Safety Talk
March 22, 2021 /Don Schaffner
Berries, Norovirus, Hepatitis A
106.png

106. Sharing Dessert

February 12, 2021 by Don Schaffner

Dr. Don and Professor Ben talk about the risks of sharing dessert on Valentines (or any other) Day

Dr. Don - not risky 👍🏼
Professor Ben - risky ☣️

  • Is Double-Dipping a Food Safety Problem or Just a Nasty Habit? - Scientific American
  • Effect of Biting Before Dipping (Double‐Dipping) Chips on the Bacterial Population of the Dipping Solution
  • Woman Who Licked Blue Bell Ice Cream Tub And Put It Back Could Face Charges : NPR
  • Emerging role of bacteria in oral carcinogenesis: a review with special reference to perio-pathogenic bacteria
  • Saliva and viral infections
  • Detection of Norovirus in Saliva Samples from Acute Gastroenteritis Cases and Asymptomatic Subjects: Association with Age and Higher Shedding in Stool - PubMed
February 12, 2021 /Don Schaffner
Dessert, Saliva, Norovirus, Cross-contamination, Double dipping
uber easts toilet.jpg

32: Food Stored in a Delivery Bag in a Restroom

August 24, 2020 by Don Schaffner

Dr. Don and Professor Ben talk about the risks of eating food stored in a delivery bag in a restroom

Dr. Don - not risky 👍🏼
Professor Ben - not risky 👍🏼

  • (12) JSmith on Twitter: “Risky or Not? @benjaminchapman @bugcounter https://t.co/n5mMp5MxKv” / Twitter

  • Bathroom-stored grocery bag fingered in norovirus outbreak | CIDRAP

August 24, 2020 /Don Schaffner
Restrooms, Food delivery, Norovirus

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