FDA Warns Viral TikTok Avocado Hack Could Cause Salmonella Infection

A viral TikTok trend claims that avocados can be preserved fresh for weeks with just water and refrigeration, but the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) believes the video is misleading as it could make people severely ill.

For months now, the video of avocados being submerged in water during the refrigeration time is doing the rounds on TikTok. However, as per the FDA, the trick can result in salmonella and other harmful bacteria breeding in the fruit.

The so-called trick was first demonstrated by user @shamamamahealing who displayed how following the method helped a two-week-old avocado not go bad with its skin turning overly soft and dented. The mom of four showed the "magic" method of keeping the uncut avocado in a container of water to make it last "in the fridge for up to a month."

Fellow TikTok users, who were quite impressed by the trick, tried it themselves for days, only to have FDA dismiss it as unhealthy.

While FDA didn't dispel the claims that the spoilage of avocados can be delayed by the method, the organization also didn't recommend practicing it. "The FDA does not recommend this practice," a spokesperson told Today in a statement. "The main concern is with the possibility that any residual human pathogens that may be residing on the avocado surface, may potentially multiply during the storage when submerged in water."

The FDA scientists have also run their own tests on avocados and concluded that the procedure can harbor Listeria monocytogenes--a bacteria specifically harmful to pregnant women, seniors, and people with weak immunity--which can infiltrate directly into the inner skin of the avocado as a result of submerging it in water for weeks, according to ABC 7. As a result, humans become all the more susceptible to ingesting the bacteria which, in turn, can cause conditions like diarrhea, fever, chills, and abdominal pain.

An FDA research published in 2018 found that, out of 1,615 avocado samples, over 17 percent had Listeria monocytogenes lurking on their skins. The organization advised washing the skin thoroughly before cutting the fruit. "Even if you plan to cut the rind or peel off the produce before eating, it is still important to wash it first so dirt and bacteria aren't transferred from the knife onto the fruit," it said.