Computers, phones 'dirtier than toilets'
(Agencies)
Updated: 2004-03-16 09:55

Keyboards, computer mice and telephone dials are more infested with microbes than toilet seats, according to a University of Arizona study.

The study recommends that office workstations be regularly disinfected since they can on average contain 400 times as many germs as a toilet seat, said Charles Gerba, a University of Arizona microbiologist.

According to the study, telephones harboured up to 3,895.65 germs per square centimeter, keyboards 510.85 and computer mice 259.84. The average office contains 3,249.76 germs per square centimeter.

“Desks are really bacteria cafeterias,” Gerba said in a press release. “They are breakfast bars, lunch tables and everything else, as we spend more hours at the office.

“When someone is infected with a cold or flu bug, the surfaces they touch during the day become germ-transfer points because some cold and flu viruses can survive on surfaces for up to 72 hours,” he said. “An office can become an incubator.”

U.S. health officials last month warned about the dissemination of germs during the flu season.

Officials reminded Americans to cover their nose and mouth while sneezing, wash their hands regularly and use disinfectant swabs to clean their office desks.

Close

Today's Top News     Top Life News
China puzzled over US filing tax complaint at WTO         Chen, Annette Lu slightly wounded in shooting         Specific reform objectives set for banks         Bush urges allies to stick with united mission         Marriage bells toll in cyber churches         Chinese, French women hold dialogue	China on show in song and story       Girl, 14, becomes a mother       Dazzling art works catch collectors' eyes       Liver-transplant patient gives birth       China final of Miss Universe to be held in "Spring City"       Computer game cracked down on for discrediting China's image