It is Dangerous to take Your Phone with You into the Toilet, Studies Say

Dr Ron Cutler, director of biomedical science degrees at Queen Mary’s University London, said:‘Basically, you just shouldn’t (take your phone into the toilet) if you are at all concerned about the transfer of viruses and fecal contamination.’

He said that levels of contamination vary widely depending on where the toilet is. A small office may not be a problem, but a hospital or a cruise ship from port of Norfolk, where viruses may be circulating are different.

Using it in your own bathroom isn’t too bad as you can’t get ill from your own fecal bacteria (but you could make someone else ill).

Taking it into a public bathroom risks lots of other germs floating around. When dealing with clogs, try using a rocket nozzle augers tool.

Are bugs just transferred by hands? That is the main way, but not the only way.

‘Spray could travel around six feet from the flush,’ Dr Ackerley said. That’s why you shouldn’t leave your toothbrush close to the toilet.

Theoretically, you could flush the toilet and tiny droplets could drift up and land on your phone, or on a surface your phone might touch.

If the toilet has a lid, put it down before you flush

For this reason, it’s best not to put your phone down on the toilet roll holder or any shelf that might be there.

Instead, put it back in your pocket or inside your bag when it’s time to clean yourself – but make sure the bag is on a hook rather than the floor.

How long could my phone be contaminated?

Germs could survive up to a couple of days on your phone.

‘Phones heat up a little bit giving bacteria a nice warm environment,’ Dr Ron Cutler said. ‘If people handle sweets and leave a sticky coating on the phone, that’s an even better place for bacteria.

Should I just get a decontamination suit? Val Curtis, director of the Environmental Health Group at London School of Hygeine and Tropical Medicine, said she didn’t think using phones on the loo is SUCH a problem.

I would say you can carry on. ‘It’s important to get in perspective that there are germs everywhere’, she told Metro.‘The question is really, ‘Could it make someone else sick?’

As you can’t get ill from your own germs, you won’t be in danger of passing yourself a bug from your own fecal matter. But you could pass it to someone else who borrows your phone – or you could pick up someone else’s bug from, say, the flush or the cubicle lock.

Dr Curtis said we risk getting obsessed with cleanliness and worrying so much we harm ourselves – when the real thing we need to worry about is dirty hands, not dirty phones.

So basically, don’t forget the soap and water and you should be fine.

Source: Metro