When you think of the dirtiest place in your home, the toilet seat naturally springs to mind. So recent research has found roughly 50 bacteria per square inch on your toilet. Keeping this metric in mind, you’re going to be surprised at how much worse other things are when comparing the bacteria found on toilet seats.
Prepare to be grossed out.
15 places and objects with more bacteria found on toilet seats
1. Your phone
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We hope this doesn’t come as a surprise to you. After all, your handphone is the most common item people use throughout the day. There are 10 times more bacteria on your smartphone than the bacteria found on toilet seats!
Turn off your phone, take it out from its cover and wipe the entire device clean with a damp cloth and some disinfectant. Try to make this a regular habit because your phone will quickly become dirty again!
2. Inside your fridge
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The fridge drawers that hold meat and veggies are found to contain the most disease-causing bacteria!
Pull out these drawers and wipe them down with a solution of lemon, vinegar and water.
3. Toothbrush holder
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You wouldn’t think there would be a place with more bacteria found on toilet seats in the bathroom. But the toothbrush holder can gather residual water where bacteria can fester. Make sure to clean that out once a week with soap and hot water!
4. Oven controls and stove hobs
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Chefs at home are constantly fiddling with these controls. But we often forget to clean these knobs while cleaning the kitchen. Make sure to include the controls to the oven and stove since bacteria hides really well in this area!
5. Work desk
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Your work desk can be up to 400 times dirtier than the number of bacteria found on toilet seats. Keep your workspace clean by moving everything off the desk and wiping it down once a week. Clean health leads to clearer minds and better work productivity!
6. The carpet
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The carpet is found to be 4000 times dirtier than the bacteria found on toilet seats. That’s 200,000 bacteria per square inch! All the crumbs and dead skin are great food for bacteria to nibble on. Which is even more reason to hoover frequently, as well as deep clean the carpet twice a year. And don’t forget to wash your feet often!
7. Your laptop
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Specifically, your keyboard is 200 times dirtier than the toilet seat! The more productive you are, the more dirt gathers there. Particularly because a lot of us work through our lunch, typing in between bites. Hair, crumbs and all sorts fall in between the gaps.
Use a cloth to wipe down the keyboard (unplug it from the desktop if it’s separate). You can also buy a can of compressed air to blow out the bits from between the keys.
8. Kitchen sponge
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The sponge does more than soak up water and sponge. It absorbs all the dirt and grime from our dishware and cutlery. That’s why there are 10 million bacteria per square inch of the tiny square.
That’s 200,00 times dirtier when compared with the bacteria found on toilet seats!
And all the more reason to change sponges once a week!
9. Kitchen sink
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After the sponge, the kitchen sink is the most popular spot for bacteria to gather. Once a week, wipe it down with disinfectant or a solution with vinegar and lemon to get it fully sparkling clean.
10. Washing machine
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Over 100 million e.coli bacteria can transfer to your next load. That means no laundry load is ever clean! If you want to prevent getting diarrhoea, then run the machine with an empty load and put two cups of bleach in the detergent compartment.
11. Remote control
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Just like phones, we use our remotes often. But we also rarely clean it after binging on a Netflix series. Use a disinfectant and a damp cloth to give it a quick wipe down.
12. Chopping board
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Considering all the raw material that passes here, it’s no surprise it’s 200 times dirtier than the toilet seat! Make sure you give it a good scrub and if there are crevices, soak the board in hot water and soap for a while to get all the bits out of there.
13. Dishcloths
Similar to sponges, dishcloths can hold a lot of bacteria. Especially since we use them to wipe down surfaces and are often left damp overnight. This explains why they’re 20,000 times dirtier than the bacteria found on toilet seats!
Once a week, throw used dishcloths in the washing machine.
14. Handbags
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British researchers discovered handbags were up three times dirtier when you compare with the bacteria found on toilet seats. And even worse, your favourite handbags are likely to be ten times dirtier! Vanity products like lip gloss and moisturiser were some of the main culprits. The inside of these bags are often grimy since we chuck our things in there and neglect to clean it every once in a while.
Keep handbags off the floor. And when you clean it, turn the fabric inside out and use a sponge with gentle fabric cleaner.
15. Pet bowls
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Keep your pet healthy by washing their kibble bowls after eating. If you don’t, then they could be eating from a surface that’s 100 times dirtier than a toilet seat!
This article first appeared on NONILO.com. It is edited and published with permission for theAsianaprent.
