Public Restroom Hygiene Myths to Help Keep Holiday Shoppers Healthy

It doesn’t matter how long I wash my hands as long as I use soap – False

Evidence suggests you should scrub your hands with soap for a minimum of 15-30 seconds to effectively remove germs. However, many other countries and global organizations have adopted recommendations to wash hands for 20 secondsⁱ

Hand sanitizers can replace washing your hands with soap and water – False

Washing hands with soap and water is the best and most effective way to reduce the number of microbes and germs on hands. Although alcohol-based hand sanitizers can quickly reduce the number of microbes on hands in some situations, they are not as effective as soap and water when it comes to removing and inactivating gastrointestinal illness-causing germs such as Cryptosporidium, norovirus and Clostridium difficileⁱⁱ.

The hotter the water used for handwashing, the better – False

Studies show that water temperature does not affect microbe removal. In fact, there is no research to prove that higher temperatures improve handwashing at allⁱⁱⁱ.

You don’t have to dry your hands after washing them – False

Studies show that germs can be transferred more easily to and from wet hands^iv.

Hand dryers are more hygienic than paper towels – False

Research shows that paper towels can help remove bacteria, unlike air dryers which can increase bacteria counts. Paper towels are also less likely to contaminate other restroom users as air dryers have also been shown to spread bacteria between three and six feet from the device, increasing the chances of cross contamination^v.

Hand dryers work faster – False

Studies indicate it takes approximately 10 seconds to dry hands using a paper towel while air dryers require 40 seconds to achieve similar dryness^vi.

I need to squat, hover or use a seat protector to stay safe from germs – False.

The stall furthest from the restroom door is the least used and therefore the cleanest – False

People tend to skip the first stall in favor of stalls farther back to have a little more privacy. Because the first stall is used least often, it’s most likely the cleanest^vii.