HEALTH
1,609
1,512
1,319
910
1,045
1,090
967
Bike-share
handlebar
Dirty
workout
shirt
AT M
machine
keypad
Public
water
Cofee shop
door
handle
Oice
bathroom soap
dispenser
Pizza shop
cheese shaker
Taxi seat
Mobile phone
screen
Train
handhold
bar
Elevator
button
Oice
toilet seat
Oice light switch
Laptop
keyboard
Holy water
Toothbrush
bristles
Gym
dumbbell
Train Terminal
door han
Oice
cofee machine
Lips upon waking
(brush, then kiss!)
807
630
543
494
475
470
454
261
113
110
105
105
67
59
58
- Grooved or textured
surfaces tend to harbour
more bacteria because
they’re harder to disinfect
with a swipe. - Synthetic clothing fibres
like polyester collect more
bacteria than natural
fibres like cotton. - Copper door handles have
significantly less bacteria
than stainless steel
ones. (Copper has natural
antibacterial properties.)
And the contamination
level of a pull-door handle
is five times that of a push
plate. So “handle” them
with care.
AVO I D G E R M S
Hands at
end of day
D
w
s
Public
al
d
45
ntain
et
hi
Supermarket
basket handle
Bufet
tongs
As I slip into a church, I feel like Jason Bourne.
My backpack contains 20 plastic capsules
and a small electronic monitoring device.
To the security guards, I could look like a
bioterrorist. My mission: to procure a sample
of holy water.
I use a gaggle of tourists as cover and
surreptitiously scoop up my sample. Forgive
me, Father, for I have sinned...
The device in my backpack is a Hygiena
EnSURE ATP luminometer. ATP stands for
adenosine triphosphate. Your body’s cells use
We set our intrepid
writer, Joshua St.
Clair, loose in the
city with a germ
detector. Here’s what
he found – and what
you should avoid
1
KNOW WHERE
THE GERMS
ARE LURKING
ATP molecules for energy, so the more ATP on
a surface, the greater the biological activity. In
other words, the higher the ATP reading, the
more abundant the bacteria. I skulked around
the city for days, swabbing anything that
looked suspicious, including myself.
Microbiologist Dr Adam Roberts says we
shouldn’t obsess over germs. “It may seem
terrible to think every surface you touch is
teeming with life, but that’s just life.” Still, in
such a “lively” world, it can’t hurt to be aware
and have a plan for dodging the worst.
Just so you know: these are Josh’s luminometer readings from his city germ safari.
THE ICK METER Big numbers suggest big pathogen parties. Watch what you touch, and wash your mitts!