If you work from home, here's a scary warning! (Prepare to be grossed out by this.)
And it's not just your keyboard. Your mouse is just as riddled with the dirty stuff. For this study, which was commissioned by the consumer advocacy publication group Which?, Francis swabbed 33 keyboards, a toilet seat and a toilet door handle at the publication's London offices. The results? Four of the 33 keyboards were so dirty they were considered potential health hazards, and one of them had levels of germs that were five times greater than those on the toilet seat! The takeaway: Keyboards--including the spaces between keys--are a haven for microbes. Granted, it was a very small study, and the findings can't be extrapolated to include all keyboards in all offices. But the results are in line with previous research that shows our daily routines often put us in harm's way with some potent germs.
"Keyboards are clearly contaminated," Dr. Pascal James Imperato, distinguished service professor, chairman of the department of preventive medicine and community health, and director of the master of public health program at the State University of New York Downstate Medical Center in New York City, told ABC News. "Computer keyboards are fairly recent in terms of widespread use. So there have probably been not too many studies done to check on the level of contamination of keyboards."
Ew! Never touch THIS in your office--especially if you're a woman.
But does it pose a health threat? Probably not, according to Dr. Aaron Glatt, president and chief executive officer of New Island Hospital in Bethpage, N.Y., and spokesperson for the Infectious Disease Society of America. He told ABC News, "There is no surface under the sun...that is sterile. I think we have to say that there is overwhelming evidence that this is not a danger for most people. People can't go crazy about the worry and concern of being exposed to bacteria." The time for concern is if the bacteria on the keyboard get past the body's natural defense, namely the skin. The danger occurs if you have a cut or your hands go into your mouth after they've been on the keyboard.
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Your best protection? Wash your hands well and frequently. "The trick is to try and minimize and limit your exposure within a reasonable context," Glatt explained to ABC News. "Hand washing is the single best, cheapest, most effective way to limit your exposure you have throughout your life with potentially dangerous bacteria. It's amazing how this basic, basic advice is ignored by huge numbers of people every day."
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Here's the good news: If you are the only one who uses your keyboard, don't fret. The chances of it transmitting bacteria to you is relatively small. Of course, you could always clean your keyboard. Anyone want a disinfectant wipe?
Oh, gross! Find out what happens every time you flush a toilet with the lid up.
