Hidden Dangers: What bacteria is hiding in your kitchen?

Everyone's kitchen gets dirty, but you might be surprised just how dirty.

KNOE decided to find out, so Shellie Sylvestri teamed up with Medical Laboratory Science students from ULM to give a kitchen the full "swab".

The team checked the cabinets, stove top, kitchen faucet, countertops and even the inside of the refrigerator.

The swab samples were sealed and sent to the microbiology lab at University Health Conway, where they incubated at body temperature for 24 hours.

Within two days, the results were in.

"I did what we call plating the cultures, which is putting the cultures on different media plates," says Karen Williams, a Quality Generalist at Conway. "None of these were like 'Oh my gosh, how'd he get that there?'"

The good news first: most of the samples hardly grew anything at all.

"Most had normal skin flora, stuff you'd expect."

The bad news: the countertops and fridge handle both had traces of a form of staph. Williams says it's nothing to sweat about, though.

"If you're cooking with raw vegetables, fresh vegetables, throw your keys on the counter... it's going to be there. It's not the 'superbug.'"

Mold was also found on the pipes underneath the kitchen sink.

Overall, the results were less shocking than expected, but still a reminder to keep your kitchen clean.

"Bleach is always the best standby," says Williams.

Scientists also say the best way to prevent mold or bacteria build-up this Thanksgiving, leftover food should not be left out for more than two hours before going into the fridge.