The kitchen is the dirtiest room in a house, but germs also collect in the bathrooms, particularly in toothbrushes. Home offices are bacteria-ridden thanks to heavily-touched objects like keyboards and phones. Also on the list is living room carpet, washing machines, and food and water bowls for pets.
The kitchen holds the title for “germiest place in the house”, where bacterial contamination is far more common than in the bathroom, for example: Kitchen rags, towels and sponges are notorious for bacterial contamination.
Kitchen. The kitchen is one of the busiest rooms in most homes and also the dirtiest. All of the elements that encourage bacteria to grow–heat, moisture, and food–are readily available.
Kitchen Sponge
Wrong. According to germ expert Charles Gerba, a microbiologist at the University of Arizona, the kitchen sponge is actually the dirtiest item in your home. Here's why: While you clean various surfaces and dishes with your sponge, the porous surface collects food particles.
There are four types of bacteria that are extremely common within a household. Staphylococcus, Micrococcus, Pseudomonas, and Bacillus are the most common types. Micrococcus is spherical, and can be found in meat products, in water, and in your soil.
Studies have shown that of the bacteria found in indoor air, the most common four are: Micrococcus, Staphylococcus, Bacillus, and Pseudomonas.
The most common pathogens are Group A Streptococcus (GAS) and Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA). GAS and MRSA can lead to severe and invasive infections involving multiple internal organs.
Tests were conducted on volunteers' sheets and pillowcases every week over four weeks of use. The results found a higher bacteria count on the bedding than on many of the grimiest places in your home. “Pillowcases washed a week ago have over 17,000 times the number of bacteria as a toilet seat!” the results shouted.
Think the toilet is the dirtiest spot in the house? You'd be wrong. "There's more fecal bacteria in your kitchen sink than there is in a toilet after you flush it," said microbiologist Charles Gerba, known as "Dr. Germ."
The kitchen is the dirtiest room in a house, but germs also collect in the bathrooms, particularly in toothbrushes. Home offices are bacteria-ridden thanks to heavily-touched objects like keyboards and phones. Also on the list is living room carpet, washing machines, and food and water bowls for pets.
Studies have shown that of all the surface areas in the bathroom, the floor is by far the dirtiest. That's because when we flush the toilet germs spread everywhere, and land on—you guessed it—the floor.
If ever there was a place where regular cleaning — once a week, once every other week, depending on use — makes your life better, it's in the bathroom.
What is the cleanest part of your house? Surprisingly, the cleanest part of your house is likely to be your toilet pan. While the bathroom is wrongly thought to be a hothouse of bacteria in your home, the toilet has been proven time and time again to carry fewer bacteria than certain areas of your kitchen.
Your carpet
filled with germs? Your carpet has a whopping 4,000 times more bacteria content than your toilet seat.
It's not just the bathroom doorknob that's dirtier than a toilet, it's all the doorknobs, handles, light switches, and electronic keypads around your home that are probably teeming with bacteria or virus-laden. A quick wipe down with a disinfectant wipe will take care of the problem.
But the filthiest culprit in our homes is the kitchen sponge or cloth. According to Gerba, there are about 10 million bacteria per square inch on a sponge, and a million on a dishcloth. In other words, a kitchen sponge is 200,000 times dirtier than a toilet seat, and a dishcloth is 20,000 times dirtier.
Pillows carry many germs or human respiratory pathogens. Respiratory pathogens are not only present on the cover but can seep through fabrics and seams and into the filling material. Common pathogens found on sleeping surfaces include bacteria, fungi, and adenoviruses.
Apparently, microscopic dust mites — the kind that feed on scales of human skin — love the warm, dark embrace of a neatly made bed. Leaving the bed unmade and exposing the sheets to light can cause the mites to dry up and die. This research, from London's Kingston University, came out in 2005.
"Something as simple as leaving a bed unmade during the day can remove moisture from the sheets and mattress so the mites will dehydrate and eventually die." Not all health experts agreed, though, noting that homes are humid enough for dust mites to thrive anyway.
Summary. Bacteria can obtain energy and nutrients by performing photosynthesis, decomposing dead organisms and wastes, or breaking down chemical compounds. Bacteria can obtain energy and nutrients by establishing close relationships with other organisms, including mutualistic and parasitic relationships.
Urinary tract infections (UTI)
UTIs are mainly caused by the bacterium Escherichia coli (E. coli) and are the most common infection in humans worldwide. Symptoms include a burning sensation when urinating, blood in the urine, and strong-smelling urine.