Would you drink something with a lemon in it?

[Enoch_Ho]

Hi, can you please watch the following video before reading on?

[url]http://www.healthinspections.com/video.cfm?bWVkaWFJRD0yOA==[/url]

By now, you're probably considering to not have lemons in you're drinks, but if you could read the rest, would you're opinion change?

I have done some research about this Lemon Video. What my research has shown me is that Lemons are safe to have in drinks. I have researched the following bacteria;

Campylobacter jejuni
E. coli 0157:H7
Listeria monocytogenes
Salmonella
Salmonella enteriditis
Shigella
Staphylococcus aureus(Staph Infection)
Vibrio vulnificus
Vibro parahaemolyticus
Clostridium botulinum
Yersinia enterocolitica

My research shows me that the bacteria listed above are the bacterias that are commonly found in kitchens.
First, I would like to tell you the temperature each bacteria can withstand:

* Campylobacter jejuni thrives in temperatures ranging from 32°C to 45°C. Anything lower than 32°C will stunt the growth/multiplication of the bacteria and anything higher than 45°C will kill the bacteria.
* Clostridium botulinum can live in temperatures of 4°C to 49°C. Again, anything lower than 4°C will stunt the growth/multiplication of the bacteria and anything higher than 49°C will kill the bacteria.
* All the other bacteria that are listed above all have the same temperature range. They can live in temperatures from 4°C to 60°C. If the temperature is below 4°C, it stunts the growth of bacteria and anything higher than 60°C will kill the bacteria.

And now, for the second part of my research. Wouldn't the acidity level of the lemons kill the bacteria? Since it is a lemon, don't they have a low pH level? A pH scale works on; the lower the number, the stronger the acid, the higher the number, the weaker the acid. Well, I found out that lemons have a pH level of 2.4. All the bacteria that I listed above die from pH levels of 4.6 or lower.

If you would like to see the pH scale, heres a link:

[url]http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/46/PH_scale.png[/url]

Also, when lemons are in you're drink, wouldn't ice water kill the bacteria?(ice water is about 0°C) What about hot water?(Restaurants usually boil water, which is almost 100°C) And in alcoholic drinks, Ethanol can kill bacteria. Ethanol works by denaturing their proteins and dissolving their lipids.

So, in my conclusion, you will be safe from drinking beverages with the "Lemon Spiked With Bacteria"

If I can get you're comments if you've changed ideas about this whole lemon thing, it will be great.

Thanks!

Enoch Ho

[Kitten]

Yes, I would drink lemon. Frankly, there are tons of things that go into my body that I probably wouldn't want going there, so I'm okay with lemon.

[Serenity]

I like lemon in a glass of water and in coke. That wouldn't put me off it since I've been doing it for years and been fine. There's always some food scare or other but I use my own judgment.

[tater03]

That is usually what I order when we go out to eat. I just get a glass of water and have them put some lemon slices in it.

[riskey58]

I drink lemon water all the time. And I will keep drinking it. There is a lot more bad for you then lemon.

[Green-Moo]

I'll happily still go ahead and have lemons in my drink. If the bacteria on them haven't done me any harm in all these years, I reckon I'm fairly safe to continue.

[SageMother]

I will continue to have lemons in my drinks. The sign of a well tuned immune system in the ability to handle challenges presented by "background bacteria" found in most kitchens.

[mollyL]

I am a lemon addict. I have it in ice tea, hot tea, and colas, among other things. Sage is right that the healthy immune system can withstand this, only she said it better than I could.

[Green-Moo]

A healthy immune system develops through coming into contact with all sorts of bugs in small quantites.

[katharina]

Originally Posted by Enoch_Ho

If I can get you're comments if you've changed ideas about this whole lemon thing, it will be great.

Thanks!
Enoch Ho

I haven't changed my mind and would still drink a drink with lemon, sure. I think there are a lot of scare tactics about bacteria but we can't all live in a bubble and bacteria's all around us every day.

[Calypso]

No, this video doesn't scare me off lemon. I figure if I'm brave and/or stupid enough to eat fast food hamburgers which have all kinds of bacteria and toxins, I'm probably not going to be done in by a little yellow wedge.

[katharina]

Originally Posted by Calypso

No, this video doesn't scare me off lemon. I figure if I'm brave and/or stupid enough to eat fast food hamburgers which have all kinds of bacteria and toxins, I'm probably not going to be done in by a little yellow wedge.

Hehe Good point! I think that there are more and more scare tactics happening all the time... wonder who started this one? Oh, I know, maybe lime growers?

[debrajean]

I don't usually have anything in my drinks, so this wouldn't pertain to me. But, I tend to agree with the rest here, the body's immune system is intended to take care of this small problems.

[The right way]

The medical field has actually found that people who try to live in a bublle like state or make their kids live in it are much worse off when something does get to them. The immune system needs to be just like the rest of life to have a healthy balance, The good and the bad or else the bad comes in as a fouriner that the immune system has never seen before and the immune system does not know what to do about it.
I make sure I use antibacterials if I touch a shopping cart during times when people are getting the flu and colds and I use a paper towel to open public washroom doors and I try to chuck it to the garbage can as I am leaving, if I miss,,,oooops! I have noticed that the colliages and universities are starting to put the garbage cans right behind the door so this can happen with not so many paper towels on the floor. I also try to make sure if I see someone infront of me about to sneeze that I lower my head or turn because if they get you in the eye they have just reached an instant path to your blood stream. Also don't touch your face while out in public during illness seasons and you should be safer but to avoid the bugs a hundred percent would allow the one that gets by to harm you like you could not imagine.
Something else I heard and I believe more then the lemon thing is never read the magazines at the doctors office, everyone who has picked it up is sick with something and you can't clean a magazine with any product or procedure so stuff adds up there.
I never ask for lemon in my drinks and the only place it was served to me in a pop was in Switzerland. Sometimes here in a bar on certain drinks but I don't go to bars very often so this is not a concern for me either but I would not freak if it was there.

[kernow]

I would not have a problem having lemon in a drink, there are other food items that we should be cautious about eating but I am not afraid of lemons.