What is hygiene? It is something open to different definitions. Perhaps one of the simplest is hygiene as the set of behaviors that animals, including humans, use to avoid infection.
Hygiene habits have advanced considerably during the past hundred-off years. Moreover, compared to medieval times health is on a different plane. Many people though that bathing was unhealthy and chamber pots were simply emptied out the nearest window. The Romans may have used soap, but this practice did not become commonplace until the Victorian era.
Even then, until microorganisms were discovered, the nineteenth century view was:
“Disease caused by…atmospheric impurities produced by decomposing animal and vegetable substances, by damp and filth, and close and overcrowded dwellings.”
The modern world is much cleaner. But how much cleaner? Here are a few gross facts, picked by health expert Patrick Boshell, that demonstrate that, for some people, there is still a little way to go.
There are 200 percent more fecal bacteria on cutting boards than toilet seats
According to Patrick Boshell, Marketing Director at Deb Canada Hand Hygiene Inc., the average kitchen chopping board has around 200 percent more fecal bacteria on it than a toilet seat. For this reason, many food safety experts advise that people use different cutting boards for red meat, chicken, fish and vegetables. Some waterborne pathogenic diseases that may coincide with fecal coliform contamination include ear infections, dysentery, typhoid fever, viral and bacterial gastroenteritis, and hepatitis A.
TV remote controls carry many bacteria
This might be something to think about in a hotel room. Objects like TV remotes an light switches are among the most contaminated items in hotel rooms with bacteria levels between 2 to 10 times higher than what is accepted in hospitals.
Germs from flushing a toilet can travel up to 6 feet
Every time a toilet is flushed and the lid is left up, a fine aerosol mist is sprayed into the air that contains all types of bacteria causing diseases. This is because the flushing motion acts a little like a centrifuge. All types of air movement including hot air dryers can encourage the dispersal and transmission of this bacteria. This is the result of a study undertaken in Australia and published in the journal Mayo Clinic Proceedings (“The Hygienic Efficacy of Different Hand-Drying Methods: A Review of the Evidence.”)
Handbags carry up to 10,000 bacteria per square inch
Bags come into contact with places including where pathogens are commonplace, public washrooms, public transport and the floors of restaurants, malls and bars. That bacteria travels everywhere the bag does, landing on desks, restaurant tables and counter tops and so forth.
1 in 5 People Don’t Wash Their Hands
It is estimated that around 1 in 5 people don’t wash their hands and of those that do only 30 percent use soap. The U.S. CDC recommends 15-20 seconds of vigorous hand washing with soap and water to effectively kill germs, but only about 5 percent of people wash their hands for 15-seconds or more. The result – fecal matter including bacteria such as E. coli can be found on just over a quarter of our hands.
Interesting, if slightly unpleasant, facts.
