Why should you not eat or drink in the laboratory?

Storing food or beverages in chemical cabinets/refrigerators facilitate chemical absorption by vapor. Thus, chemical exposure takes place upon consuming food or beverages stored with chemicals. Therefore, eating or drinking in the lab is strictly forbidden.

What is not allowed in a laboratory?

Laboratories that contain hazardous chemicals, biological hazards, radioactive materials, research animals, and/or human blood or tissues require special work practices to prevent unintentional ingestion of hazardous agents. Cups, water bottles and other food and beverage items are not allowed in laboratories.

Why is smoking not allowed in the laboratory?

Smoking is prohibited in laboratories as there are areas containing considerable quantities of flammable chemicals and therefore there is a high risk of fire.

How do you dress in a lab?

Clothing: Wear long pants or skirts and closed toed shoes, and tie back long hair. Do not wear shorts, short skirts, sandals, loose clothing, or dangling jewelry. 2. Lab coat: Wear a lab coat that covers the arms.

What are lab safety rules?

General Laboratory Safety Rules

Know locations of laboratory safety showers, eyewashstations, and fire extinguishers.
Know emergency exit routes.
Avoid skin and eye contact with all chemicals.
Minimize all chemical exposures.
No horseplay will be tolerated.
Assume that all chemicals of unknown toxicity are highly toxic.

When should you wear goggles in a lab?

Lab workers are required to wear the eye protection at all times when working with hazardous materials. The required eye and face protection for all work with chemicals that can cause eye injury use (i.e., corrosive, formaldehyde, and methylene chloride) are: Goggles with indirect ventilation (marked “ANSIZ87 D3”)

Why do people not eat in the lab?

Some labs have very sensitive equipment and you could spill your food or drink on them and destroy them. Your food could contaminate the specimens that are being tested and give you false/useless results. But for the most part it’s because of getting poisoned by the chemicals.

Why is it illegal to drink in a lab?

The risk of becoming poisoned, diseased or otherwise infected by eating or drinking in a lab is too high. What happens if you put down your sandwich on a surface that, an hour earlier, had been used for a brain dissection, or to culture fungi! Furthermore, it’s illegal to eat or drink in a lab, for these reasons.

Is it OK to eat in a chemistry lab?

Educators go through a rigorous application process, and every answer they submit is reviewed by our in-house editorial team. In addition to the first response, you should never eat in a chemistry lab simply because those are the rules. I have worked in many science labs and they all had stated “no food or drink allowed”.

Why is it bad to drink water in a lab?

By placing food where it can be exposed to the chemicals, even if it just the fumes from it, the food will absorb the chemical. Drinks have the same problem and acids look just like water, drinking them is fatal.

Why are you not allowed to drink in a lab?

Prohibition Against Eating and Drinking in Labs The purpose of this fact sheet is to summarize why eating and drinking are not permitted in areas where chemical, radiological, and/or biological materials are used or stored. Questions about this topic can be directed here. Definitions

Why is it bad to eat in a lab?

Because laboratories are places where chemicals are mixed, organic samples are dissected and microbes cultured, amongst other things. The risk of becoming poisoned, diseased or otherwise infected by eating or drinking in a lab is too high.

Why is there no food in a chemistry lab?

I have worked in many science labs and they all had stated “no food or drink allowed”. For example, thermometers are frequently used in labs. Thermometers are fragile and break often. They contain mercury which is very lethal when ingested.

What foods are not allowed in a laboratory?

Eating, drinking, smoking, gum chewing, the application of cosmetics or contact lenses, the storage of food and beverages or similar activities are not permitted in laboratories or other facilities where hazardous materials (as listed below) are used, handled or stored.