Do you wash your hands after going to the bathroom? If not, think of the bacteria that may be residing on your cell phone. A study in the UK has found that 92% of cell phones in use have bacteria on them, including E.coli from fecal bacteria.
Twelve cities in the UK were the centre of a study run by researchers of the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine at Queen Mary, University of London. Samples (390 of them) were taken from hands and cell phones, which were then analysed for germs. People were also asked about their hand hygiene habits: did they wash their hands after going to the washroom?
The results of the study were as follows:
- Bacteria was found on 92% of the cell phones tested.
- Bacteria was found on 82% of the hands tested. Makes you doubt whether people washed their hands after going to the toilet, even though they said they had.
- The scary result is that 16% of hands and 16% of the mobile phones had E.coli bacteria on them – a bacteria found in feces.
The researchers highlighted the need to wash hands thoroughly with soap and water after going to the bathroom. And to dry them well because wet hands spread bugs more easily than dry hands.
The first thought that went through my mind when I read about this report was: Dirty hands are not only touching mobile devices!
What is your first reaction on reading the results of this study?
© Colline Kook-Chun, 2013
Bacteria is part of our life to strengthen our immunity system.
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I agree with you. I do wonder what those people who are forever washing their hands with anti-bacterial liquid would react to this study, though.
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My first thoughts on reading this were pretty much the same as newsferret’s. The findings were very interesting though.
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I have found, Alex, that people in South Africa are not as germaphobic as the people I meet here in Toronto.
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ugh! Scary. Thanks for sharing.
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We never think of the bacteria we may find on our devices. Worth wiping them down a little every now and then, isn’t it? 🙂
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EW!!! I am also thinking about other things these people are touching. Shopping cart handles creep me out the most. 😉
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Not to mention doors, and the items in the store! 🙂
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I was appalled when I found out one of my good friends doesn’t wash her hands after using the restroom. These studies always gross me out, but they don’t surprise me that much.
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It is for this reason I wash my hands when I arrive home. Never know who may have touched what I have touched while out.
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Great topic, Colline. As a nurse, I can’t say enough about hand-washing! In terms of personal health and the health of others, hand-washing remains the best defense against the spread of any kind of pathogen. Scrubbing with plain soap and water for the amount of time it takes to sing the Happy Birthday song twice is the latest recommendation with thorough rinsing to remove pathogens loosened by soap and water, drying with a non-reusable towel and turning off taps with a disposable towel as well.
Although I agree with others who say that some bacteria does strengthen our immune system, certain kinds of bacteria such as c-dificile , e. coli., lysteria, etc. does more harm than good, especially with a high bacterial count. For those with health challenges ie. the elderly, good hand-hygiene by care-givers has proven to be an important step in the prevention of urinary tract infections, digestive upsets, diarrhea, bowel infections, etc. in our patients.
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An extremely valid point Darlene. As you say – there is good bacteria and bad bacteria. It is to avoid the bad bacteria that we wash our hands at home once we have been on buses or trains. And I have taken to doing the same once I have been shopping as well.
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Aaargh! Just horrible. How hard can it possibly be to wash you hands. That’s it, never touching anyone else’s cell phone again
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Especially when you realise that it is probably never wiped down! 🙂
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Oh my word…I am scrubbing my cell phone pronto!☺
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Definitely something we should think of doing 🙂
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I’ve seen similar studies with similar results, testing eyeglasses, PC keyboards, and virtually anything that comes in contact with our hands. It’s really quite unnerving and makes a strong case for using a hand sanitizer throughout the day.
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Or making the effort to wipe down the keyboards, etc, that we use on a daily basis. I worked with someone who did just this once a week. Friday afternoon was her time to wipe down the telephones, keyboards and filing cabinets with sanitising wipes.
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Yikes! And hand me the disinfectant!
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Preferable to wearing gloves to protect ourselves 🙂
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I was just thinking some days ago about all the places I take my cell phone with…. and I did have Ecoli some years back, but thankfully got rid of it. This is very interesting info, Colline.
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It is not something we think about, is it? Reading about the study certainly made me more aware.
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I do think reasonable standards of hygiene should be maintained – but at the same time, it is more important to promote a healthy body capable of resisting invaders than it is to keep away completely from such invaders!
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I tend to agree with you – which is why I have not joined the groups of people who continuously rub hand sanitiser on their hands to disinfect them.
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Oh, no! And I work in the hospital. Thanks for making us aware of these. It’s easy to take this things for granted until it is to late. Time to disinfect my cell phone.
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Especially as you work in a hospital where there is so much bacteria floating around.
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Very interesting post. This indeed is a concern and many companies are now developing regular cleaning procedures for keyboards and telephones.
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But in the end it begins with our own personal hygiene doesn’t it? After all, no-one else really uses our personal mobile phone. laptop or ipad.
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I’m not surprised, after all, bacteria are part of life … however, that is an an excuse for poor hygiene.
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And poor hygiene was the reason for the epidemics like the Black Plague. Thank heaven for modern medicine!
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Yep … which also makes people complacent.
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