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7 Most Germ-Filled Public Surfaces You Should Avoid Touching

This year’s cold and flu season is said to be one of the worst ones in recent memory; that even with this year’s flu shot, you may still get sick with an unexpected variant that wasn’t identified early enough to make it into the vaccine.

Web Watch knows someone who – twice a day, like clockwork – wipes down their desk at work with antibacterial wipes.  Some would say that is taking being a germaphobe a bit too far. Web Watch says that they’re just being careful with their working environment.

It’s not like the old days, where parents would purposefully encourage their kids to play with other kids’ toys without first spraying them down with disinfectent – all with the goal of building and reinforcing their child’s immune system.

GermGuardian UV-C Light Wand
Germ Guardian UV-C Light Wand

With that in mind, here is PREVENTION MAGAZINE‘s list of the SEVEN GERMIEST PUBLIC PLACES that you should avoid touching or interacting with every time you leave the house.

  • Restaurant menus.  And even if you see the hostess wipe off the menu (or the fast-food restaurant worker wiping off the plastic tray), watch what they do — or don’t do — with the wiping rag when they’re done.  Yeah, that thing ain’t clean either.
  • Lemon wedges.  “e.Coli and other fecal bacteria”. ‘Nuff said.
  • Condiment dispensers left on the table from the previous diners.
  • Restroom door handles.  Of course.  Like Web Watch or Prevention magazine needed to tell you this.
  • Soap dispensers in public restrooms. “25% of public restroom soap dispensers are contaminated with fecal bacteria”.  Which shouldn’t surprise you, as you would hope that people with fecal matter on their hands WOULD be washing their hands with soap.
  • Grocery carts.
  • Airplane bathrooms
  • Doctor’s offices