Top public places where people come into contact with germs
Just because something looks clean doesn’t mean that it is. Germs are everywhere. Did you know that germs are able to survive on surfaces anywhere from just a few hours to a few weeks? And, Americans touch 300 different surfaces every 30 minutes. The University of Arizona, Mercola, and MSNBC are only a few places that have conducted studies on the top public places where people come in contact with germs. Do you want to know what to avoid?
Children’s Playgrounds
You'd think that a child's playground would not be to bad when it came to germ congregations but 44% of playground surfaces tested positive for bodily fluids. That includes blood, urine, mucus, and saliva. When you stop to think about it, it's logical. After all, they're children. When children play at the playgrounds, remember to bring hand sanitizer and remind the children to keep their hands out of their mouths as they play.
Desktops and Keyboards
Do you let others use your keyboard? Did you cubicle neighbor sneeze all day? Then your desktop and keyboard have just become germ magnets. Make sure to use spray disinfectant on both of these items often. Don't forget to let the spray air dry.
Buttons
No, not the buttons on your clothes, but the buttons on elevators, ATMs, telephones, and vending machines. These objects are usually located in places that are rarely cleaned and disinfected. The elevator buttons for the 1st floor and ground have the most germs because everyone needs to get there. The buttons on the ATM and phones are constantly pushed by different people. How do you stay away from these germs? Use your knuckle or get someone else to push the buttons. Because of the germs associated with public transportation, elevator buttons, and other public areas, use a wet wipe to quickly clean the areas you need to use.
Public Bathrooms
You guessed it – public bathrooms are one of the nastiest places for germs to gather. But what you didn’t know was that the flush handles and other parts of the bathroom are worse than the toilet seats. Women’s restrooms are more contaminated than men’s bathrooms and the middle stall is always the worst one in the whole bathroom. But when you compare airplane bathrooms to general public bathrooms - the airplane bathrooms are much, much worse.
Public Magazines
You know those magazines that lay out on the tables in doctor’s offices? Those magazines are touched by everyone that comes through those doors. Think about it – people who are sick, sneezing, feverish, and coughing look at those magazines while they wait to see the doctor. Other waiting rooms carry magazines also. Just because it’s not a doctor’s offices, doesn’t mean that those magazines are any cleaner. Take your own reading material when you go somewhere. Watch the TV in the waiting rooms. But stay away from those public magazines.
Phone receivers
A phone receiver hits two vulnerable spots that germs love – your hands and your mouth. Cell phones and land line phones are huge sources of contamination – in both the office and at home. Try to wash the push buttons, the receiver – basically the whole phone – with disinfectant wipes. As with phone receivers, shopping carts touch all the areas that are in danger of contamination: hands, faces, and food. E. coli was found on most shopping carts, as well as fecal material. Juices from raw meat and chicken, diapered bottoms, and coughs and sneezes contaminate the handle and seats of shopping carts. In fact, shopping carts rank third on the list of the nastiest places in public.
Restaurants
Have you ever seen anyone wash a restaurant menu? A recent study in the Journal of Medical Virology reports that cold and flu viruses can survive for 18 hours on hard surfaces. Scary? Think about this: if it’s a popular restaurant, can you imagine the number of people that are passing germs around just by reading the menu? Make sure that you don’t let the menu touch your silverware or napkin. And if you can, go wash your hands or use some hand sanitizer before your food arrives.
Hotels
There have been many exposes about the filthy items found in hotels. A former hotel maid once warned me: always pull off the bedspread, never use your bare feet on the floor, do not sit down in the tub to take a bath, and don't use the covered glasses that are available, sometimes slack maids glance to see if they see any dirt and then put a new cover on top of a seemingly clean glass. And always put a plastic bag inside the ice bucket.
Picnic tables
Ever seen a picnic table that was spotless? Especially the ones that are uncovered outside? Picnic tables are some of the dirtiest places in public. Bugs, birds, and other animals are constantly crawling and pooping. Those tables have more germs that the Port-a-potties. You might want to take a nice blanket from home to spread out and eat on next time. But make sure you wash that blanket as soon as you can.
Backpacks and Purses
Ever think about where we drop our backpacks and purses? Most of the time it lands on the floor. And floors have tons of germs. Keep both of these items off the floor and remember to wipe them down with antibacterial wipes.
Shopping Carts
We've all seen the Oprah show that floored us with the bacteria and germs found on the handle of a shopping cart. Make sure that those germs don't transfer to you and make it home with you. Use the anti-bacterial wipes provided by the store to wipe down the handle and seat. How about using the sale ad to sit your purse on instead of just putting it directly on the seat?
Hospitals
Every two years approximately 12,000 people die in hospitals from staph infections. Because everyone carries the staph bacteria within their bodies, once in the hospital environment (open wounds, surgery, etc.) the likelihood of getting staph dramatically increases. The worst place in a hospital to attract extra germs is the ICU.
So, how do we keep ourselves germ free? Wash our hands. Use the soap and wash your hands for 15 to 20 seconds before you rinse.