[Nfbf-l] 11 things Germier than a toilet seat

[Alan Dicey]

I found this quite interesting.  I never thought of some of these things.  I 
guess we should all carry more hand sanitizer than anything else in our 
bags.
Some information that I just thought you'd find interesting:
Germier than a toilet seat
11 Things Germier Than Toilet Seats
People are understandably squeamish about public restrooms. But the same 
people are probably regularly interacting with surfaces that have far more 
germs and overall icky-ness than your average public toilet seat. For 
example.
1. Hotel/Motel Bedspread
Unlike the sheets, hotels and motels do not change or launder the bedspreads 
on a daily basis. It's actually more of an annual thing. And if you don't 
think there are various bodily fluids lingering in those coverings, let us 
remind you that when the bedspread from an internationally ranked five-star 
hotel was introduced as evidence in boxer Mike Tyson's rape trial, 
investigators found it coated with the DNA of so many different men that it 
took some significant time to finally isolate traces of Tyson's 
contribution.

2. Purse Bottoms
Many women who fear the germs of public toilet seats don't think twice about 
placing their purses down on the floor of the bathroom stall. Not only that, 
they also set them on the floor while riding the bus, or while dining at a 
restaurant, or while dancing at a nightclub, or on the bedspread at a hotel 
(see above ). And then, when they get home, they set that same purse on the 
kitchen counter or the dining room table while they rifle through the daily 
mail or check their phone messages. Nelson Laboratories of Salt Lake City 
tested a random selection of ladies' purses: those belonging to moms, 
executive types, and swinging singles. What did they find? Pseudomonas, 
staphylococcus aurous, salmonella, and e-coli. Many of the handbags had 
fecal contamination, and those belonging to the women that frequented dance 
clubs also had traces of vomit. In layman's terms, the pocketbooks were 
infested with harmful bacteria, the types that can cause all sorts of 
infections.

3. ATM Keypad
Studies have shown that the various keys on your average ATM serve as a cozy 
nesting place for Bacillus Cereus, a bacterium that can cause symptoms in 
humans similar to those of food poisoning. Yet folks casually punch those 
buttons and then go about their business without a second thought, touching 
their eye area to assuage an itch or holding the Egg McMuffin that they're 
munching during their morning commute.

4. Office Telephone
Have you ever used a corporate telephone other than the one on your desk? 
Who knows what evils lurk on that communal device. other than the 25,127 
germs found in a square inch on the average telephone receiver as discovered 
in a 2004 University of Arizona study. Think about it. the person who used 
that phone before you might not have the same fastidious hand-washing habits 
as you, and he/she may have answered a call immediately upon exiting the 
bathroom.

5. Restaurant Menu
Servers barely have enough time to take an order from table 11 and then rush 
to tables 14 and 17 to deliver that extra side of Ranch dressing and a round 
of beverages, respectively. Do we really expect them to wipe down the 
restaurant's oft-handled menus with anti-bacterial wipes in their "spare " 
time? The Journal of Medical Virology has reported that flu viruses can 
survive on a hard surface for as long as 18 hours. Think of how many hands 
have touched that bill of fare before you browsed over it and then 
immediately used your fingers to transport dinner rolls or breadsticks 
directly to your mouth.

6. Condiment Containers
Speaking of restaurants and germs living on hard surfaces, how many of you 
disinfect your hands in between handling the ketchup bottle or salt/pepper 
shakers and your food?

7. Grocery Carts
So you're afraid to set your naked hindquarters on a toilet seat that is 
routinely cleaned with bleach-infused products, but you push a grocery cart 
through your local supermarket bare-handed? The handle of which has been 
touched by folks who've coughed or sneezed into their hands and have also 
handled packages of raw meat? And those of you who place items in the 
fold-out children's seat - does it not occur to you that many a child's 
diapered bottom has previously occupied that space? A four-year study 
conducted by the University of Arizona at supermarkets in Tucson , San 
Francisco , Chicago , and Tampa revealed that shopping buggies were rife 
with such bacteria and viruses as E. Coli, salmonella, and Staphylococcus.

8. Steering Wheel
As mentioned above, public toilet seats are washed on a regular basis, but 
when is the last time you scrubbed down the steering wheel of your vehicle? 
During a typical day you might touch things such as a gas pump dispenser, 
cash from the bank drive-thru window, and your crying child's runny nose in 
the back seat, and then use those same hands to grip the steering wheel 
after every transaction without any disinfecting in between. Oh, did I 
mention that some of us also eat food and apply eye makeup while driving 
with those same hands that are gripping the germ-laden (mainly with bacillus 
cereus and arthrobacter) steering wheel?

9. Kitchen Faucet Handle(s)
Dr. Charles Gerba, an environmental biologist at the University of Arizona, 
once declared that if an alien from another planet landed in an average 
Earth household, he would determine (after a careful bacterial count) that 
he should wash his hands in the toilet and use the kitchen sink as a 
commode. Yep, our kitchen sponges and faucet handles are that contaminated 
with nasties, mainly because we tend to touch these items many times in the 
midst of handling raw meat, eggs , and poultry while preparing a meal.

10. Gym Equipment
How many of you who work out regularly at a gym grip the handrails on the 
treadmill or the handlebars on the stationary bike without a second thought? 
Or perhaps you grasp a series of different free weights during your 
strength-building workout. Odds are that at sometime during your workout you'll 
swipe a sweaty fist across your eyes or scratch an itch some place on your 
person (an innocent, unconscious activity that might break the skin and 
unintentionally place a virtual welcome mat inviting infection). You might 
be interested to know that the nasty "superbug" methicillin-resistant 
Staphylococcus aureus (better known as MRSA), which can survive on non-host 
surfaces for up to a month, has been found on various gym machines in 
studies done across the U.S. That's in addition to the sarcinia, candida 
specie , and staphylococcus epi that was also harvested from the various 
standard gym apparatus. And don't get us started on what was found on the 
floors of the showers.

11. Swings and Monkey Bars and Such
OK, this particular hotbed of germs might affect your offspring more than 
you, but it's certainly worth a mention, especially if you allow your child 
to munch on snacks while they romp. If your child ever frolics on the monkey 
bars, jungle gym, swings, ball pit, etc., of a communal play area, then his 
hands are a virtual Petri dish of disgustingness after each and every play 
date. Besides the traces of human fecal material found on such equipment in 
many studies, there is also the fact that kids with runny noses tend to use 
their hands as handkerchiefs while playing, and various birds in the area 
use playground equipment as their personal comfort station.

With Best Regards,
God Bless
Alan
Miami, Florida
Visit the hottest, most happening place around on the web. Where the blind 
community will be inspired and entertained!
It's the BlindCafe.net and it's a great place to learn, laugh, chat and make 
long lasting friendships with people from around the world.
There is always someone to greet you with a friendly smile night and day. It's 
totally free! Come and try out our awesome stereo    music rooms, trivia 
games, Chess Chats, Act in one of our Mystery Plays, Share your talent with 
us, receive I-Phone Lessons and updates, we offer     tutorials on an array 
of programs, we have over 600 described movies for you to listen to at your 
convenience, Revisit a classic described T V show such as Leave it to Beaver 
and Mash,    or just come on in and join us for an interactive chat, and a 
whole lot more!
It's totally accessible and easy to use.
For more info, please Visit us at www.BlindCafe.net,
That's
www.BlindCafe.net
It's the site where our members matter