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What Germs and Bacteria are lurking in your home

  • Be aware of everyday objects that we touch...

     

    Germs Easily Transferred From Everyday Objects To Hands

     


     

    A new study has found everyday objects such as telephones and kitchen faucets can transfer high levels of potentially dangerous bacteria to the hands. And from the hands, bacteria often end up on the lips. A related study by the same researchers found that oddly enough, you are more likely to contaminate your hands when making dinner than after using a public restroom.

    In one of the studies, the researchers looked at coliform bacteria, including fecal coliforms, on the palms of volunteers' hands after making dinner, cleaning the house, doing laundry, using a public restroom, petting a dog or a cat, or returning home from elementary school.

    In all cases except the last, the volunteers' hands were disinfected before the activity.Surprisingly, they found that people had the least amount of microorganisms on their hands after leaving a public restroom, while people had the most after making a meal.

    After making a meal, cleaning the house ranked next with transferring the most bacteria, because people are touching objects contaminated by other family members.

    Next came petting a dog or a cat (dogs transmitted the most germs of the two), returning home from school, doing the laundry (because of handling underwear), and using a public restroom.

    In the other study, the investigators added a mixture of bacteria and a virus to everyday objects such as sponges and telephone receivers and found that telephone receivers and kitchen faucets transferred high numbers of the organisms to the hands.

    Squeezing out a sponge transferred over 100,000 to a million organisms to the hands, they noted, while other activities such as cutting up a carrot and removing laundry from the washing machine transferred much less.

    When they added the mix of organisms to volunteers' fingertips, they found that 35% to 40% were transferred to the mouth. This is a dose large enough to cause infection with organisms that cause colds and diarrhea.

    The researchers said that they plan to use this information to calculate the daily risk of getting disease after handling these everyday objects. Although their studies did not specifically show that the contamination caused disease, Other studies have linked things like public toilets and day care centers to disease outbreaks.

  • GROSS FACTS AND FIGURES ABOUT GERMS !!!

    * Desktops and Phones have thousands per square inch more germs than a toilet seat !!!!

    * Highly contagious infectious particles can spray from a sneeze @ speeds of up to 200 miles per hour,landing @ a distance of three feet from offender & survive there for over 24 hours !!!!

    * According to the CDC, 164 Million school days are lost annually due to illness..

    * Women between the ages of 20 and 30 have more colds than men because of the exposure they receive from their children..

    >According to a recent University of Arizona study

    >According to Dr. Winkler G. Weinberg

  • TEN TIPS TO STOP GERMS IN THE BATHROOM:

    1.Color Code Bath Towels: Everyone has their own color so family don't swap towels & viruses. Say's Neil Schachter, MD.

    2. Don't Share Toothbrushes: Place them at least 1 inch apart and replace them after a illness (cold, flu) and every three months.

    3. Always Flush With The Lid Down: Polluted water vapor erupts out of the flushing toilet bowl and it can take several hours for these particles to finally settle.  -not to mention where-  If you have your toothbrush within 6 ft. of the toilet you are brushing your teeth with whats in your toilet !!!

    4. Wipe Down High-Touch Surfaces: Use disinfectant spray or wipes on faucets, toilet flushers, cupboard handles, doorknobs, shower door handles, and any other areas that have high volume of hands touching. Kills germs on contact..

    5. Set Up a Paper Cup Dispenser: Use a paper cup dispencer not a plastic or a ceramic cup because you are spreading enormous amounts of viral load in plastic cups that are often shared among family members.

    6. Choose Functional Tissue: Virucidal Tissue- these tissues prevent the spread of viruses around the house because it kills them when you blow your nose, so they are not left lying around.

    7. Wash Your Hands After you do your Business: Always wash your hands after using the rest room or changing a diaper, cleaning a bathroom and if you should come in contact with blood or body fluids.

    8. Scrub the Inside of the Toilet Bowl: This should be done @ least a couple times a week with products that contain bleach.

    9. Let the Water Run: Germs can grow in showerheads. If you haven't used yours for a while, let it run hot on full power for a min. or 2 to flush any germs away before showering.

    10. Scrub Showers, Bathtubs, and Countertops: These should be cleaned to help reduce the spread of viruses, fungi, and bacteria. @ least 2 x a week with a disinfectant that contains bleach.

    Medically updated October 18th, 2007

     

  •  

    The Six Common Household Items With the Most Germs

     

     


     

    By Dr. Joseph Mercola
         with Rachael Droege

    Germs in the home can show up where you least expect them, even if you diligently try to keep your home clean. Despite good efforts by most to keep their homes germ free, over 65 percent of colds, 50 percent of all cases of diarrhea and 50 percent to 80 percent of food-borne illnesses are caught in the home, and common household items are often to blame.

    So what is the most germ-ridden room in your house? It's not the bathroom--it's the kitchen. In fact, there could be up to 200 times more fecal bacteria on your kitchen cutting board than on your toilet seat. This is likely because people regularly disinfect their bathroom while kitchen items may be overlooked.

    Of course, my recommendation is to avoid illness by building up your immune system with a healthy diet, lifestyle and emotional balancing, but it certainly makes sense to decrease your exposure to potentially harmful bacteria when you can. The following household items are commonly overlooked sources of contaminants that can easily be kept clean with a little elbow grease.

    Kitchen Sponges and Rags

    • The moist environment of sponges and rags is an ideal place for bacteria to flourish. Wiping your counters or dishes with a dirty sponge will only transfer the bacteria from one item to another.

    • Replace kitchen sponges and rags often. Ideally, this should be about once a week.

    • Allow them to dry out between uses. Most bacteria can only survive a few hours on dry surfaces.

    • Make sure that you remove all organic material from the sponge or rag before you leave it to dry.

    • Disinfect sponges regularly by putting them in the dishwasher. Rags should be washed in the washing machine and then dried on high heat. You can also sterilize sponges in the microwave. A dry sponge can be sterilized in the microwave in 30 seconds, a wet sponge in one minute. For those of you who have stopped using a microwave to cook your food, this is one way to put it to use.

    Cutting Boards

    • The cracks and crevices in your cutting board provide plenty of space for bacteria to grow.

    • Be careful of cross contamination. If you use your cutting board for raw meat or fish, be sure to sanitize it thoroughly before chopping vegetables.

    • To clean the board, first hand-wash it using hot water and dish detergent to remove any food particles. You can then use a mixture of 1 teaspoon chlorine bleach in one quart of water to sanitize the board, leaving it to air dry.

    • Alternatively, you can put the board in the dishwasher to sanitize it.

    • You may want to keep two cutting boards in the kitchen, one for raw animal products and one for fruits and vegetables.

    • (continued in next column)

 

 


 

By Dr. Joseph Mercola with Rachael Droege

 

(continued) 

  • Kitchen Surfaces

    • Kitchen countertops can still harbor germs even if they look clean. This is especially true if you've "cleaned" them with a dirty sponge or rag.

    • The kitchen faucet and faucet handle is an often-overlooked source of potentially harmful bacteria.

    • Be sure to disinfect all surfaces regularly using hot water and soap or a diluted solution of chlorine bleach and water.

    Sink Drains

    • The drains in both your kitchen sink and bathtub provide yet another moist environment that bacteria love.

    • Use baking soda and an old toothbrush to get rid of stains, grit and grime around drains.

    • Disinfect drains regularly as you would any other surface.

    Doorknobs

    • Bacteria can easily accumulate on doorknobs and other handles such as the particularly problematic refrigerator handle. Anyone can transfer bacteria from their hand to a doorknob, and these bacteria can cause illness, especially if the person is sick, doesn't wash their hands after going to the bathroom, or has touched raw food. When you touch the doorknob you may also pick up the bacteria, which can then enter your body if you touch your eyes, nose or mouth.

    • Wash your hands frequently, even if they don't look dirty, but be careful not to overdo it. If you wash your hands too frequently, the fatty acids in your skin will be depleted, which leaves you susceptible to open wounds and sores that actually increase the risk of infection.

    • Antibacterial soaps are completely unnecessary, and they cause far more harm than good. It would be wise to identify a simple chemical-free soap that you can switch your family to. Local health food stores typically carry a variety of natural soaps.

    • Clean doorknobs and the refrigerator handle regularly with a clean cloth soaked in a diluted solution of chlorine bleach and water.

    Toothbrushes

    • It's important to replace your toothbrush every three months not only because of bacterial accumulation but also due to bristle wear.

    • Replace your toothbrush after you've had an infectious illness to avoid coming in contact with any lingering bacteria.

    I'd like to mention that I don't recommend going through your home on an antibacterial cleaning frenzy. Doing so will disrupt the balance of bacteria in your home, wiping out both good and bad varieties, which could pave the way for harmful bacteria. You are better off using antibacterial/disinfectant cleaners on an item-by-item basis rather than as an all-purpose cleaner. Also be aware of the ingredients in commercial cleaners as many contain harsh chemicals that can be harmful to your health. Your local health food story likely carries a variety of safe cleaning alternatives.

    I also urge you to consider getting rid of your existing towels, sponges, rags and other conventional tools you use to clean your home with. Not only are they some of the top sources for illness-causing germs in your home, but also they do a very poor job of cleaning the biological and toxic aspects of dirt in your home.

    In their place, I highly recommend the PerfectClean line of cleaning tools, like the PerfectClean terry cloths and dusters. Due to their ultra-microfiber construction, you can use them with only water (so you eliminate the need for cleaning your home with chemicals) and they clean at a deeper level than any other product you could find out there.

    And remember, some bacteria are necessary and actually provide health benefits to humans. A good example of this is the good bacteria in your gut.

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    Cheap Sweep Maid Service
    531 Julian Drive
    Monongahela, PA 15063
    ph: 412-401-2619