Could your purse be making you sick? Health magazine
on lurking viruses
TODAY
Updated: 3:04 p.m. ET Oct. 23, 2007
Sure, there are outbreaks of
microbes and viruses across the country, but some of these germs
are lurking where you least expect them. Health magazine senior
editor Frances Largeman-Roth pinpoints the 12 germiest places
youre likely to encounter during an average day and devises ways
for you to keep clean. After all, the fight is in your hands.
Literally. Eighty percent of infections are spread through hand
contact. So wash up, people, and get ready to wage a bit of germ
warfare of your own:
1. Your kitchen sink
Kitchen sinks are dirtier than most bathrooms. There are typically
more than 500,000 bacteria per square inch in the drain alone. Plus
your sponge, basin and faucet handles are crawling with bacteria as
well.
Reduce the risk: Clean your kitchen counters and sink with an
antibacterial product after preparing or cleansing food, especially
raw fruits and vegetables, which carry lots of potential pathogens
like salmonella, campylobacter and E. coli. Wash your hands as well
with warm, soapy water for 20 seconds (long enough to sing Happy
Birthday). Sanitize sponges by running them through the
dishwashers drying cycle, which will kill 99.9 percent of bacteria
on them. As for the sink, clean it twice a week with a solution of
one tablespoon of chlorine bleach and one quart of water. Scrub the
basin, the pour solution down the drain.
2. Airplane bathrooms
It may not be a shock that there are a huge number of germs in most
public bathrooms, but experts agree the cramped and overused ones
on airplanes are the worst. There are often traces of E. coli or
fecal bacteria on the faucets and door handles because its hard to
wash hands in the tiny sinks. And the volcanic flush of the commode
tends to spew particles into the air, coating the floor and walls
with whatever had been swirling around in it.
Reduce the risk: Toilet seats are surprisingly clean, but use the
paper cover when available. After using the toilet, wash and dry
your hands thoroughly, and use a paper towel to handle the toilet
seat, lid, tap and doorknob. Put the lid down before you flush. If
theres no lid, turn your back to the toilet while flushing and
beat a hasty retreat.
3. A load of wet laundry
Any time you transfer underwear from the washer to the dryer,
youre getting E. coli on your hands. Just one soiled undergarment
can spread bacteria to the whole load and machine.
Reduce the risk: Run your washer at 150 degrees (you can check the
temperature of your washing-machine water with a candy thermometer)
and wash whites with bleach (not the color-safe type; it doesnt
pack the same punch), which kills 99.9 percent of bugs. Transfer
wet laundry to the dryer quickly so germs dont multiply, wash
underwear separately (theres about a gram of feces in every pair
of dirty underwear) and dry for at least 45 minutes. Wash your
hands after laundering.
4. Public drinking fountains
Drinking fountains are bound to be germy, but school fountains are
the worst, with anywhere from 62,000 to 2.7 million bacteria per
square inch on the spigot.
Reduce the risk: Send your child to school with plenty of their own
beverages and tell them to wash their hands throughout the
day.
5. Shopping cart handles
Saliva, bacteria and fecal matter are just a few of the substances
found on shopping cart handles. Cart handles rank high on the yuck
scale because theyre handled by dozens of people every day and, of
course, raw food carries nasty pathogens.
Reduce the risk: Many stores have dispensers with disinfectant
wipes near the carts. If your store doesnt, bring your own wipes
and give the handle a quick swab. Or carry along a cart cover like
the Grip-Guard or Healthy Handle.
6. ATM buttons
If youre not careful, you might pick up more than quick cash from
your local ATM. These buttons have more gunk on them than most
public-bathroom doorknobs! ATMs arent frequently cleaned, and are
regularly touched a perfect combination for a lot of germs.
Reduce the risk: Carry an alcohol-based hand sanitizer with you and
rub it on hands after visits. Also be sure to do it after you
handle paper money, which actually carries quite a few germs,
too.
7. Your handbag
Recent studies found that most womens purses had tens of thousands
of bacteria on the bottom and a few were overrun with millions.
Another study found bugs like pseudomonas (which can cause eye
infections) and skin-infection-causing staphylococcus bacteria, as
well as salmonella and E. coli.
Reduce the risk: Instead of slinging your bag on the floor, hang it
on a hook whenever possible especially in public bathrooms and
keep your bag off the kitchen counter. Stick with leather or vinyl
purses, which are typically cleaner than cloth.
8. Playgrounds
Theres just no way to put this delicately: Children tend to ooze
bodily fluids and then spread them around. When researchers sampled
playgrounds, they found blood, mucus, saliva and urine. Pair those
findings with the fact that children put their fingers in their
mouths and noses more than the rest of us, and its easy to
understand why Junior (and maybe his mom or dad) has the
sniffles.
Reduce the risk: Carry alcohol wipes or hand-sanitizing gel in your
purse, and clean everybodys hands a couple of times during a park
visit, especially before snacking. Pick warm sunny days for outdoor
play: The suns ultraviolet light is actually a very effective
disinfectant. Most bugs wont survive long on surfaces that are hot
and dry.
9. Mats and machines at health clubs
Antibiotic-resistant staphylococcus has been found on yoga mats and
cardio and resistance machines. At high schools,
antibiotic-resistant-staph infections have been transmitted through
wrestling mats. The same thing could happen at health clubs.
Reduce the risk: Wipe down machines with antibacterial wipes before
working out. Bring your own yoga mat or cover a loaner with your
towel. Shower after a workout and soap up your skin to rinse off
any bacteria you may have been exposed to, as thorough washing gets
rid of antibiotic-resistant staph.
10. Your bathtub
Shocking, but true: The place you go to get clean is quite dirty. A
recent study found staphylococcus bacteria, a common cause of
serious skin infections, in 26 percent of the tubs tested, as
compared with just 6 percent of garbage cans. Tubs typically had
more than 100,000 bacteria per square inch! Youre washing germs
and viruses off your body and the tub is a fairly moist
environment, so bacteria can grow.
Reduce the risk: Once a week, apply a disinfecting cleaner to the
tub and actually scrub. Then you need to wash the germs down the
drain with water and dry the tub with a clean towel. If you leave
the tub wet, germs are more likely to survive. If someone who uses
the tub has a skin infection, scrub it afterward with a solution of
two tablespoons bleach in one quart of water.
11. Your office phone
This is enough to make you dial 911: Office phones often have more
than 25,000 germs per square inch, and your desk, computer keyboard
and mouse arent far behind. Phones, including cell phones, can be
pretty gross because they get coated with germs from your mouth and
hands.
Reduce the risk: Simply cleaning your desk, phone and keyboard with
a disinfecting wipe once in the middle of the day will kill 99.99
percent of the bacteria and viruses.
12. The hotel-room remote control
Whats the first thing you do when you settle in at a hotel? You
grab the remote control and switch on the TV you, and the
hundreds of other guests whove stayed there. How dirty is it? A
recent study tested various surfaces for the cold virus after a
group of sick people had stayed overnight and found the virus on
the remote, door handles, light switches, pens and faucet
handles.
Reduce the risk: Clean the remote control, phone, clock radio, door
handles and light switches with germicidal wipes.
source from http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/21423163/?GT1=10450
