Debunking the "5 Second" Rule

I was watching the "Today" show this morning as I was getting ready for work and they were discussing food-borne illnesses. [You're probably thinking "I don't really want to hear about all the nastiness I'm eating without realizing it, so I'll stop reading now." My response, "Keep going, keep going!"] They listed a few different points for the viewers to read as they discussed those yucky germs we all ingest, hoping we ate at least a pound of dirt before we were three so we have some semblance of an immune system to pounce on those germs before they can say "Abracadabra!"

So, just in case you missed those points this morning, here they are (and I must say, it really DOES take a rocket scientist to figure these out):
1. Cook your meat until it's not raw anymore. (Okay, they gave specific temperatures, but I don't remember what they were and I'd hate to lead anyone astray).
2. Don't eat things that have fallen on the floor a la the "5 second" rule. (Forget that!)
...and my personal favorite...
3. Keep hot foods hot and cold foods cold. (This one I learned at the ripe old age of, let's say 5, after hearing dear old Gran say it over and over so we'd never forget it. Turns out grandmas really do know everything.)

So, as you're attending those many barbeques this summer, don't forget your meat thermometer, eat your food burning hot or freezing cold (maybe if you go back and forth between the two extremes quickly enough you won't burn your tongue or get a brain freeze), and pack a really big bib so you don't have to surreptitiously scoop anything off the floor.