The average American office has 21,000 germs per square inch. Makes you wonder what might be lurking on your stapler. Dr. Srinivas Iyengar, a cardiologist at the Bradenton Cardiology Center and Daytime’s resident doctor is tells us how to germ-proof your office.
Custodial staff members are usually responsible for cleaning common areas, but not an individual’s desk. So while you may be distrustful of a communal bathroom, your desk probably contains about 400 times more bacteria than a toilet seat! Wipe down your space daily with a disinfectant — a chemical agent that kills microorganisms. Plain water will not do the trick. Handy dispenser wipes like Clorox Disinfecting Wipes and Lysol Sanitizing Wipes run only about 10 cents a sheet.
An active office worker can touch up to 30 surfaces in a minute. Most cold and flu viruses are transmitted via surfaces – such as doorknobs, printers, and shared supplies. Touching these surfaces transfers the virus to the eyes, nose and mouth.
A recent study found about 20 percent of workers never clean their desk before eating, while 75 percent of workers wipe down “only occasionally.” And yet the typical desktop is about 100 times germier than the average kitchen table. Plus, if that snack came from a stash in your desk drawer, then you’re cultivating a garden for mold.
I would say the office phone or worse yet, your cell phone. A recent study in England found one in six phones had the potentially life-threatening bacteria E. coli. E. coli is highly contagious, surviving on hands and surfaces for hours especially in warm temperatures and is easily transferred by touch to food and mobile phones, where it can be picked up by others. A swipe with an anti-bacterial cloth daily can help prevent the buildup of germs and bacteria