ReadersDigestAustraliaNewZealand-April2018

READER’S DIGEST

foundthatremotecontrolsinhos-

pitalroomsharbouredmoregerms

than many other common items

found there. (Beware of hotel re-

motes, too.)

22 The supermarket checkout

touch screen.Self-checkout screens

house nasty bacteria, including fae-

cal, says Gerba.

23 Your steering wheel.Research-

ersatQueenMaryUniversityofLon-

donswabbedanumberofsteering

wheels and found nearly nine times

more germs on them than on public

toilet seats.

24 Your kitchen sponge or dish-

cloth.These are hands down the

germiestitemsinyourhome.Ina

randomstudy,75percentofsponges

and dishcloths had bacteria such as

Salmonella growing in them.

timesaweekfeltmoreenthusiastic–

andlessstressed–immediatelyafter.

20

Taking your coffee break

in the oce kitchen.Step

outside instead, and your waistline

will thank you. A US study found that

people who get the majority of their

daily sunlight before noon have lower

BMIs than those who catch some rays

later in the day.

YOUR NIGHT

AND WEEKEND

21 – 24

Touching any of

these possibly

contaminated things without thor-

oughly disinfecting it first or wash-

ingyourhandsafterwards:

21 Remote controls.University of

Arizona germ expert Charles Gerba

April• 2018 | 31