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how long can bacteria live for without moisture?
so I found these teeny tiny red bacteria spores, not many (at least spotted by eye) growing on my guar gum when exposed to some moisture. If this guar gum is left to dry out for lets say, 5-7 days, will it die? or will it remain in a dormant state, then grow when things get moist again?
thanks…..
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5 Replies
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Well, this bacteria was revived after 100 million years. Suffice it to say it’s going to take a lot longer than 5-7 days. That is how many types of bacteria work. When conditions become inhospitable turn into spores which can last a really, really long time. When conditions become better, they’re ready to grow again. The only way to stop bacteria growth is to kill the spores.
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oh wonderful! There goes 5 lbs of guar gum! better to chuck it all and be safe than sorry! Thanks Perry, as always, for enlightening us :smiley:
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By FD&C definition, cosmetic ingredients are effectively cosmetics and a cosmetic produced with an adulterated ingredient is adulterated. Excessive/OOS micro counts establish adulteration - that they might die off over time (or the infamous - the preservative will kill it off) is irrelevant - adulterated is forever . a
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agree. I was just wondering, anyway. Also just curious..I notice this red bacteria ‘spore’ only grows on metallic surfaces…but when i put the guar gum in a plastic box or glass jar..( all exposed to moisture) it doesn’t seem to grow ..or atleast it’s not visible to the eye. Why is that? Is there something about the metallic surface? Is this what the chemists are saying about using a chelator so that it eliminates metal/ions that feed fuel to the bacteria?
Just curious
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I’ve done food service prep for years, so I’ll add in my 2 cents.I don’t think that bacteria “only” grows on metallic surfaces… bacteria (and other microbes) can grow anywhere they please. But they can grow on many metallic surfaces because some of them prefer cooler temperatures and/or there is residual water or food there… this is why in food prep, we spray the hot kayquat on metallic surfaces like tables and leave it to dry for 30 seconds…microbes are extremely persistent.Remember, it is always raining microbes, and there are all kinds of microbes sitting on your skin that can be transferred from surface to surface. So, the “growth” you see on the metallic surface may have simply been from you touching it a lot.
We touch more things than what we realize, which is why infectious diseases can spread so quickly.
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