When you think about the places in your home that is most likely to be infested with germs, you'll probably start listing off obvious places like the toilet, doorknobs, and the kitchen sink. But it turns out that the most germ-infested things in your home are the towels in your kitchen! A University of Arizona study found that 89 percent of kitchen towels had coliform bacteria and a quarter carried E. coli. The reason behind this mini colony of grossness forming on your rags is because we typically use them to wipe down dirty counters that might have been contaminated with raw meat juices and then we wipe our hands on them, too. Below, a few tips on keeping your kitchen towels germ-free and other spots around your home that need a little extra attention when disinfecting so that you can escape flu and cold season unscathed.
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1. Keep those kitchen towels as sanitary as possible by washing towels every three or four days or dipping them into diluted bleach and letting it dry if you're in between washes. Stick to paper towels to wipe down counter tops after preparing food to avoid cross contamination.
2. The remote control is like a germ superhighway because everyone's reaching for it and might not always been so keen on washing their hands frequently. Give it a good wipe and get in its crevices to make sure it's thoroughly disinfected. Don't forget to do the same before grabbing that remote in your hotel room.
3. Food particles can get trapped in your kitchen sink's drain, sponges, and stopper, which leads to bacteria growth and foul smells. To fight back, wash your sink after each use, clean out the drain with baking soda and vinegar, and clean sponges in a solution of 3/4 cup of bleach mixed in a gallon of water. Let it soak for five minutes.
4. Sink faucets are another spot that harbor loads of bacteria. We turn them on with dirty hands and then when we go to turn off the water, we recontaminate our cleans hands again! Wipe yours down with a disinfecting cloth and when you're out in a public restroom, use a paper towel to turn the faucet and open the bathroom door.
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