Germiest places to avoid

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How to avoid getting sick from germs
List of the germiest places to avoid

Wash your hands and avoid germs! Correct hand washing procedures
could prevent up to 50% of waterborne gastrointestinal illnesses.

Germs are microscopic animals that need warmth, moisture and
sustenance for survival, and they get these things from food
scraps, feces and from live hosts, including humans! Germs thrive
in areas that are soft, porous and room temperature or higher,
but they need time to multiply.

The good, the bad and the ugly germs:

  • Good germs: Among the many good germs is the
    Lactobacillus germ, which turns milk into yogurt! Believe it or
    not, but you have E. Coli in your body right now and it's
    there to help you digest food. There is a about 100 trillion
    good bacteria germs in your gut right now, and they are
    essential to your survival.

  • Bad germs: Germs from the common cold and season flu
    make you feel bad, but it's the bad and ugly germs that you
    need to worry about. While E. coli in the gut is good, it's bad
    when E. Coli gets outside of your gut. E. coli in one person
    might not do much harm, while the same strain of the
    bacteria in another can cause severe illness and even death.

  • The ugly germs: While they may look cute pictured left,
    coliform bacteria (salmonella and E. coli), along with
    Hepatitis A, staph germs, yeast and mold all can make you
    terribly sick.

The two main types of germs are bacteria and viruses.  In total,
the four major types of germs are: bacteria, viruses, fungi, and

Here are the germiest places to avoid with solutions on how to
avoid them...

Germiest places to avoid when the stuff hits the fan
Where do germs congregate? Where are the bacteria hiding
places? Read on to learn the dirty dozen culminated from AARP,
ABC News and other sources...

Dirty Dozen Most Germy Places to Avoid

#1: Shopping carts.
According to AARP more than 2/3 of shopping carts tested had
Fecal bacteria! The amount exceeded what was found in the
average public restroom:

  • SOLUTION: Be sure to use the disinfecting wipes on the
    handles (and on the child seat if you plan on placing a kid or
    a handbag there).

#2: Handbags.
Why is the handbag such a germy place? Think of it Because
many women who visit the toilet of a public bathroom have no
place to hang their handbag, so they place it on the floor of the
stall. After a long day out and about, it's so easy to come home
and put the purse on the kitchen counter. It's like bringing the
bathroom directly to your food! Also, going back to item #1, think
of how many women place their handbags on shopping carts,
directly in the place that babies ladened with diaper germs sit.

  • SOLUTION: Make a habit to hang your purse on a hook at
    home and get a portable purse hanger for when you"re out
    and about. Use a purse hanger to hang your handbag from a
    table or bar when you are in cafe, restaurant, bar, the ladies
    restroom and any other places where germs love to hang.

For the guys with a man bag (or backpack), this applies to you as
well. Hang the backpack on the chair with the zippers facing in,
so that the contents of your backpack are kept away from

#3: Kitchen counter: culprit is the purse!
Coliform bacteria loves kitchen counters and the culprit is the
purse, handbag or backpack.

  • SOLUTION: Find a place to hang your stuff and remember
    never to put your handbag on the kitchen counter!

#4: Sponges.
Bacteria gets trapped into the crevices of a sponge and the
moisture keeps them alive. It's the perfect breeding ground for

  • SOLUTION: To remedy the situation and keep your sponges
    squeaky clean, prepare a bleach sanitizing solution weekly.  
    Be sure to replace the skanky looking sponges quickly. You
    can also microwave sponges, but you should be throwing
    away the microwave. Put them in the dishwasher too!
    Afterwards, use a few drops of sweet orange essential oil or
    lemon essential oil, which have antimicrobial properties.

#5: Kitchen sink strainer.
Shocking but true, the strainer in your kitchen sink is among the
most germiest places to avoid as it can be a source of
E. coli and
Salmonella.  It's the most germy place in your house according to
several sources. Mold is another culprit of sickness lurking in the
kitchen sink.

  • SOLUTION: Steramine, the multi-purpose sanitizer for
    sanitizing food contact surfaces. Spray on food processing
    equipment, sinks, countertops, cabinets, refrigerators,
    stovetops, cutting boards, and all other non-porous articles
    and surfaces. Apply with a clean cloth or sponge.

#6: Cutting boards.
Designate one cutting board for raw meat and yet another for the
cooked meat, then keep others for bread, fruit and vegetables.  
Keep beef and vegetables separate to avoid cross contamination.
E. Coli comes mostly from beef and vegetables, according to TIME
magazine. Who says that around 80% of reported cases of E. Coli
are traced to those two sources. Transmission of Salmonella in
food comes from many sources. Most
Salmonella comes from
seeded vegetables and fruits,  according to TIME magazine,
though also may come from eggs and poultry, sprouts, pork and

  • SOLUTION: Keep your cutting boards separate.

#7: Keyboards.
Fingers harbor loads of germs, which is one reason why you must
resist the urge to pick your nose with your bare skin. Grab a
tissue to avoid direct transmission into your body! Nose picking
happens. Think of that next time the kiddo wants to borrow the

  • SOLUTiON: Wipe keyboards periodically! Magic Clean,
    pictured left, removes dust, hairs and germs through a
    rubber based gel compound that absorbs the dirt off your
    device. When it changes color, it's time for replacement.

#8: Shoes (drop them at the door).
Shoes track germs of the nastiest kind into your home. Give
yourself some Brownie points if you  drop shoes at the door of
your home before entering.

  • SOLUTION: Have everyone entering your household drop
    shoes at the door. Get a shoe bench for the entryway.

#9: Public Toilets: The last stall.
Last stall of the public bathroom, next to the stall for people with
disabilities. The last stall is the stall most travelled. The first
stall of a public bathroom is the cleanest, because that’s the one
people want to avoid. (They want privacy from those entering the

  • SOLUTION: Pick the first stall! It's the one with the least

#10: Toilet handles (Public or Private).
While people often clean the toilet bowl and maybe the toilet
seat, they almost never wipe the toilet handle! Yet the toilet
handle is where you must reach directly after doing your
business. Thankfully you'll wash your hands after you do your
business, but then your germy hands are there waiting for you
again at faucet handles.

  • SOLUTION: Grab some toilet paper to flush the handle (or do
    nothing and let the next guy handle it).

#11: Toothbrush holders.
Toothbrushes are close to the toilet and because of this aerisol
fecal matter floating about causes them to be infected with
coliform, along with mold and yeast. What's more, the sink keeps
it moist with activity as well.

  • SOLUTION: Get a hygienic covered toothbrush holder,
    instead of just a cup.

#12. Wet Laundry.
Wet laundry is a surprising item on the list of places nasty germs
like to congregate. Washing machines are teeming with bacteria
thanks to our undergarments.

  • SOLUTION: Don't let washed laundry sit in the washer, get it
    to the dryer immediately and also clean underwear
    separately from your other clothes and dry for at least 45
    minutes. Also, run the bleach cylce at least once a month.

And you were thinking that the toilet was the most germy place
in your house? The toilet seat didn't make the
top ten list of
germiests spots in your home according to CBS news.

Were you banking on money being one of the germiest items?
You'd be wrong. Money is dry and germs don't have much time to
multiply on paper currency and coins. What's more, coins have
antibacterial qualities, including as copper.

How to avoid the germs that make you sick
Take note of how to minimize germs (and stay healthy in an off
grid world)...

#1: Avoid the germiest places.
Here's the complete list of the 50 germiest places to avoid:
  1. Airplane bathrooms (germs fly on airplanes too)
  2. Amusement park rides (Measles was transmitted at
  3. ATM buttons (they have more germs than most public
  4. Bathtubs, according to ABC news have more than 100,000
    bacteria per square inch!
  5. Beds and pillows (84% of beds in U.S. homes host dust
    mites) according to NBC news
  6. Cell phones
  7. Coffee mugs (one in five coffee mugs contain fecal bacteria
    and E. coli according to 1,001 Facts that will scare the S#*T
    out of you, pictured right).
  8. Coffee makers routinely have mold and yeast along with
    coliform bacteria.
  9. Condiment dispensers (ketchup, especially)
  10. Cosmetic bags (can cause eye infections)
  11. Cutting boards
  12. Doorknobs
  13. Drinking fountains (saliva, bacteria and fecal matter are
    commonly found)
  14. Escalator handrails
  15. Elevator buttons
  16. Faucet handles often carry coliform bacteria and sometimes
  17. Flight attendant (germs take flight in serving so many
  18. Fresh towels! They might smell nice, but they are among the
    germiest places if you washed them with your underwear!)
  19. Gym mats and machines, and weight lifting gloves
  20. Lemon wedges - Restaurant lemons, according to AARP, and Prevention Magazine carry E. Coli fecal
  21. Light switches
  22. Handbags (thousands of bacteria can live underneath)
  23. Handrails
  24. Keyboard
  25. Kitchen counter
  26. Kitchen sink strainer
  27. Office phones
  28. Office microwaves
  29. Pet bowls commonly have mold and yeast (poor Fido).
  30. Pet toys are the top source of dangerous staph bacteria,
    along with yeasts and mold.
  31. Phone receiver
  32. Playground equipment (blood, mucus, saliva and urine are
    among the most common samples found on playground
  33. Purse on the counter gives the kitchen counter germs
  34. Refrigerator handles
  35. Restaurant menus, according to Prevention Magazine. Keep
    them off your utensils and plates!
  36. Restroom door handles
  37. Remote controls, particularly hotel rooms (use a sanitizing
  38. Soda machine buttons
  39. Soap dispensers
  40. Shoes
  41. Shopping cart handles (use the complementary disinfecting
  42. Shower curtain (it's moist and of the same bath tub germs
    mentioned above)
  43. Sponges
  44. Stove knobs hide mold and yeasts
  45. Toilet handles (much dirtier than the toilet seat)
  46. Toilet seat
  47. Toothbrush holders
  48. Vacuum cleaners (they contain mold).
  49. Vending machine buttons
  50. Wet laundry and washing machines.

#2: Wash hands.
Washing hands frequently is the best way to avoid germs! Germs
can't enter your body if your hands are clean if you have no

#3: Eat foods with friendly bacteria and take
probiotic supplements.
The top ten foods loaded with the good bacteria (probiotics)
  1. beer
  2. buttermilk
  3. chocolate
  4. cheeses with live active cultures
  5. kimchi
  6. miso
  7. sauerkraut
  8. sourdough bread
  9. tempeh
  10. yogurt

#4: Know where germs enter.
Germs get into your body through your mouth, nose, breaks in
the skin, eyes and even your genitals.S taying away from germs
is your best defense against getting sick. Here are the ways
germs get into your body:

Germs enter your body through wounds...
Open wounds are the primary point of entry. Any puncture to your
skin is reason for concern in an off grid world, as it represents
possibilities of germs and bacteria entering your body. Germs
enter your body through cuts, sores, or any kind of broken skin,
such as a burn.

Germs enter your body through your ears, nose and mouth...
When hands touch germy places, such as soil and pets or fecal
matter, they then carry the germs to ears, nose and mouth.

Germs enter through exposure to feces...
Fecal matter can carry:
  • E. coli.
  • Gastoenteritis (virus germ)
  • hepatitis A
  • norovirus,
  • rotavirus,
  • salmonella

Germs enter through consumption of food...
Bacterial germs cause food poisoning, including:
  • Bacillus
  • Campylobacter
  • Closridium
  • Salmonella
  • Shigella
  • Staphylococcus

Germs enter through swallowing water...
You can catch an infection by swallowing water in a swimming
pool contaminated with human waste, or drinking contaminated
water. Waterborne illnesses include:

Happy endings...
Thankfully, most germs are the good ones, but now you know the
germiest places to avoid, and you know how germs enter your
body and know what foods will help you gain good gut bacteria.

Did you know...
Eating foods with good bacteria can help prevent tooth decay,
gingivitis and periondotisis? That's right, you'll have better oral
health! Probiotics can also help with eczema.

Related articles...

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