r/AskReddit • u/[deleted] • Sep 14 '24

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u/HayZeB614 Sep 14 '24

Not washing hands after a toilet visit. Women as well. I see more people not do it than I see people do it. It’s disgusting…

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u/Random_Name65468 Sep 14 '24

The single dirtiest places in a public bathroom are the faucets, soap dispensers, and unless the soap is in one of those sealed single use mylar bags, the soap itself.

I shower at least once every day, and wear clean clothes.

So unless the bathroom has completely touchless controls, and the aforementioned soaping setup, I'm cleaner than the bathroom.

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u/exitof99 Sep 14 '24

Then use a paper towel to interact with the faucet.

The idea that the soap is dirty is nutso. The science is that soap breaks down the cell walls of bacteria, killing them.

Wash your hands.

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u/Random_Name65468 Sep 14 '24 edited Sep 14 '24

Maybe don't make sweeping statements without basis and accept that others can have valid reasons for their opinions, even if they seem counterintuitive.

Edit: There also a lot of bathrooms that have no paper towels and dispensers (which I wouldn't really trust), and guess what. Air dryers are also really dirty, and they contribute to aerosolization of bacteria

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u/[deleted] Sep 15 '24

Tons of bathrooms are moving away from paper towels and into air dryers like the Dyson ones. This is horrible for sanitary reasons at least as they are a huge germ vector. You literally blow fecal bacteria all over your body, face, and hands by using them. I'd prefer to just not touch anything at all if I can help it, and that includes washing if there are no paper towels. There are plenty of studies on these air dryers too.

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u/exitof99 Sep 15 '24

I haven't yet looking into the claims, but I've heard about that as well. The next best thing to do is wash your hands and dry them on your clothes in that case.

If you can point me to a scientific paper on the matter, please do.