[heba]

ew. figured this is relevant to islamicans.

CANBERRA (Reuters Life!) - Think twice before eating those dropped crumbs off your computer keyboard -- you might as well be eating off a toilet seat, according to a new study on the amount of germs on keyboards.

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A study by British consumer magazine "Which? Computing" asked a microbiologist to examine 33 keyboards in a typical London office, a toilet seat and a toilet door handle, for bugs generally found in unhygienic places.

Four keyboards were judged potential health hazards and the microbiologist recommended the removal of one keyboard as it had 150 times the pass limit of bacteria -- five times filthier than the swabbed toilet seat.

"Most people don't give much thought to the grime that builds up on their PC, but if you don't clean your computer, you might as well eat your lunch off the toilet," said Sarah Kidner, editor of "Which? Computing" in a statement.

The study found that eating lunch at desks is the main cause of a bug-infested keyboard. Dropped crumbs and food encourages the growth of millions of bacteria.

Poor personal hygiene, such as not washing hands after going to the toilet, may also add to the dirtiness of keyboards.

But despite the health hazard of a dirty keyboard, a survey of 4,000 people by the magazine found one in 10 people -- or 11 percent -- never cleaned their keyboard while another two in 10 never cleaned their mouse.

Almost half -- or 46 per cent -- cleaned their keyboard less than once a month.

To clear out bugs, the magazine recommends users unplug keyboards, turn them upside down and shake them.

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[salmanjafri]

Originally Posted by heba

Poor personal hygiene, such as not washing hands after going to the toilet, may also add to the dirtiness of keyboards

No way?! I would never have thought that!

Are these bacteria that grow in keyboards disease-causing? Article didn't clarify.

[AmroodWaala]

Did the makers of Purell fund this study?

[sally]

i heart this stuff.

[Caramel_Candy]

I don't like public restrooms and they definently are dirty but they aren't as dirty as people assume. [The obvious urine and poo stains are a different story] Most people are so scared to sit on a toilet seat that they usually end up squatting and use a paper towel to open the door handle which keeps bacteria at bay. This reminds me that I once did a lab report in my microbiology class and swabbed different public places and grew the bacteria on a nutrient agar plate. The water fountain grew a lot more colonies of baterica than the toilet seat did. Gross.

Originally Posted by salmanjafri

No way?! I would never have thought that!

Are these bacteria that grow in keyboards disease-causing? Article didn't clarify.

Some of them can be. If someone didn't wash their hands after using the restroom and used a computer the obvious bacteria that would be present would be E. Coli (It's transmitted through a fecal oral route). Although most strains of E. coli are harmless, others can make you sick. Some kinds of E. coli can cause diarrhea, while others cause urinary tract infections, respiratory illness, pneumonia, and other illnesses but most people get better within 5-7 days. Some kinds of E. coli cause disease by making a toxin called Shiga toxin. The bacteria that make these toxins are called “Shiga toxin-producing” E. coli, or STEC for short. Around 5–10% of those who are diagnosed with STEC infection develop a potentially life-threatening complication known as hemolytic uremic syndrome. Basically your kidneys could stop working and you can develop other serious problems and you need to be hospitalized. But the percentage of that happening is relatively low so the best thing you can do to avoid transmitting this bacteria is to wash your hands before and AFTER you touch a keyboard (or keep hand sanitizer with you) and don't put your fingers in your mouth after you've used a public computer [or your own if your nasty and don't wash your hands after your trip to the bathroom]


i love microbiology

[AmroodWaala]

Originally Posted by Caramel_Candy

Some of them can be. If someone didn't wash their hands after using the restroom and used a computer the obvious bacteria that would be present would be E. Coli (It's transmitted through a fecal oral route). Although most strains of E. coli are harmless, others can make you sick. Some kinds of E. coli can cause diarrhea, while others cause urinary tract infections, respiratory illness, pneumonia, and other illnesses but most people get better within 5-7 days. Some kinds of E. coli cause disease by making a toxin called Shiga toxin. The bacteria that make these toxins are called “Shiga toxin-producing” E. coli, or STEC for short. Around 5–10% of those who are diagnosed with STEC infection develop a potentially life-threatening complication known as hemolytic uremic syndrome. Basically your kidneys could stop working and you can develop other serious problems and you need to be hospitalized. But the percentage of that happening is relatively low so the best thing you can do to avoid transmitting this bacteria is to wash your hands before and AFTER you touch a keyboard (or keep hand sanitizer with you) and don't put your fingers in your mouth after you've used a public computer [or your own if your nasty and don't wash your hands after your trip to the bathroom]

Simply put: It's ok, you'll live.