Sometimes, it just can't wait till you get home! But with the questionable sanitary state
of public bathrooms, one has to wonder - should you hover above or cover the seat with toilet paper?
Are you really at risk of contamination?
It may be surprising, but in a typical home, your cutting board has around 200 times more
fecal matter on it than the average toilet seat. Even worse is the dish sponge, which
has around 200,000 times more bacteria. And while we've all seen our fair share of dirty
public toilets, the truth is, if it passes the site test and seems okay, it's probably
cleaner than most other objects in a bathroom.
Regardless, your skin is designed as an excellent barrier to microorganisms. Even though some
bacteria such as E. Coli can survive on a toilet seat indefinitely, if you don't have
an open sore near the it, or there isn't something foreign or sharp on the seat, the bacteria
isn't likely to get inside your body.
And while placing a layer of clean paper on the seat may reduce your contact with germs,
it's worth considering a few things. First, the species of bacteria typically found on
toilet seats are common skin microbes that most people already carry, meaning they pose
little threat unless you are immunocompromised. And secondly, chances are, microorganisms
are already over everything in the bathroom. Seriously. Simply flushing a toilet creates
aerosolized bacteria meaning that that toilet paper itself is likely contaminated.
The risk of infection comes most frequently from improper hand washing, followed by touching
your mouth, eyes, or other bodily openings. If you're that worried about germs and
insist on wasting toilet paper for your toosh, you should probably be in a biohazard suit,
because either way, you're being exposed.
On the other hand, hovering over the toilet is a perfect alternative if you're grossed
out, and gets a little workout in there as well. Otherwise, sit with confidence, wash
your hands, and when you're done, waltz over to that door and touch the handle that everybody
who didn't wash their hands touched too :)
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