The 101 dirtiest things we touch

Protect yourself from getting sick: Disinfect items and wash your hands

It is no surprise that our world is filled with millions of germs. Some germs are both wanted and important. In fact, we have populations of germs that live on our skin and inside our bodies that are essential for life. This group of microbes and germs is collectively called a microbiome and will be the subject of a future article.

Unfortunately, many germs are not essential to us and are downright dangerous for our health. The most important thing you can do for good health is to wash your hands on a regular basis.

Many of these germs live on ordinary, everyday objects that we use all the time. Some of the items around us we would expect to be dirty. Some of the other things around us may be very dirty, and the list of them may come as a complete surprise.

Even if you are not a total germaphobe, when we look at the list of 101 of the dirtiest things we encounter and touch every day, it should make us more motivated to wash our hands regularly.

The List

1. Airports security bins
2. Armrests at public places like theatres, doctor’s offices, lecture halls, airplanes and other forms of public transportation (including the food trays that are stored in airplane armrests)
3. Appliance control knobs
4. ATM buttons
5. Banisters at home and in stairwells
6. Bar games (pinball buttons, video game buttons, darts, hockey game handles, etc.)
7. Bathtubs
8. Bathroom door handles, especially inside, leading out
9. Bathroom sink faucet handles
10. Bowling balls (free loaners at the alley) 
11. Car interior controls, including shifter knobs, radio, climate control, and touchscreens
12. Car seatbelts (insertion parts)
13. Carpeting
14. Casino dice
15. Cell phones
16. Children’s toys
17. Coffee mugs at restaurants
18. Coffee pot handles and all things commonly touched in the office break room
19. Computer keyboard
20. Computer mouse
21. Copy and fax machine buttons
22. Credit cards
23. Crosswalk buttons
24. CPAP masks and keypad
25. Diaper changing stations
26. Doorknobs
27. Door handles
28. Doorbell buttons
29. Drinking glasses at bars and restaurants
30. Drinking fountains
31. Elevator buttons
32. Escalator handrails
33. Eyeglasses
34. Fruit (like limes) squeezed into cocktails, beer and other drinks. Often, the bartenders are in a hurry and grab the lime or other fruit slices with their bare hands. Then they squeeze and drop the fruit down into your drink. The germs from their fingers are now on the fruit that is floating in your drink or Mexican beer. As one person said, it is the same as going into the bar and asking the bartender if you can lick their fingers. Oh my!
35. Gaming controls
36. Garage remote controls in our cars and on the garage wall
37. Gas pump handles
38. Grill handles
39. Hairbrush handles
40. Handles on subways and trams that are used to hold on to when the vehicle is moving
41. Handshakes
42. Hearing aids and eyeglass frames
43. Hot tubs
44. Hot and cold-water dispenser knobs/levers
45. Hotel room telephones
46. Keys
47. Kitchen sink
48. Kitchen sink sponges and towels
49. Kitchen towels
50. Laundry. Use bleach on whites, hot water washes, and long hot, dry cycles
51. Light switches
52. Litter boxes
53. Locker door handles at the gym
54. Loofa sponges
55. Lunch boxes
56. Magazines in reception rooms
57. McDonald’s play areas
58. McDonald’s play area plastic balls
59. Money, including coins and paper
60. Mailbox handles
61. Microwave keypads
62. Office telephones and telephone receivers
63. Paper towel dispenser levers
64. Parking meters
65. Pens on a cord or chain (like at the bank) or the stylus pen at the credit card signing station
66. Pet toys
67. Pet dishes
68. Pet leashes
69. Playground equipment, inside and outside
70. Poles on subways and trams that are used to hold on to when the vehicle is moving
71. Public bathrooms: inside stall latches
72. Purses
73. Railings in stairways
74. Refrigerator door handles
75. Restaurant menus
76. Restaurant salt and pepper shakers and table condiment containers
77. Restaurant table tops — especially if wiped down with a sponge or cloth from the same tub of water used over and over, or the sponge or cloth is used repeatedly on all tables.
78. Restaurant utensils and dishes, including shared utensils to serve food at buffets. Studies have shown that almost all restaurant silverware has detectable amounts of norovirus, E. coli, and Listeria.
79. Security door keypads
80. Security system alarm programming pads
81. Self-checkout stands at the store
82. Shoes, especially the bottoms
83. Slot machine buttons
84. Soap dispenser buttons
85. Sports balls (basketballs, volleyballs, footballs, etc.)
86. Sports equipment at the gym, inclkudindf bikes, treadmills, weights)
87. Steering wheels (cars)
88. Stove and oven control knobs
89. Shopping cart handles
90. Shower handles
91. Testers (e.g. make up) and sample jars at stores
92. Toilet seats
93. Toilet flush handles/levers
94. Toothbrush and toothbrush holders
95. Touchscreens
96. TV remote controls
97. Urinal flush handles
98. Vending machine button
99. Wallets
100. Water bottles that are regularly refilled
101. Straps on subways and trams that are used to hold on to when the vehicle is moving

Many of the things around us can and should be cleaned on a regular basis. Most things should be cleaned daily or weekly. Use a commercial disinfectant spray or wipe according to directions. For cell phones, use a microfiber cloth and a 70 percent isopropyl alcohol solution.

You can’t clean everything, so your best defense for good health is to wash your hands regularly and especially after touching the items listed above. Click here for a great article on proper hand washing.