No matter what time of year it is, germs and bacteria are constantly present. There are some habits that we’ve gotten used to and we need to talk about them. Sometimes, we are gross. Let’s be a little less gross by addressing it, and talking it through. Guard against your health and keep your family healthy with a few simple changes. Here are five gross habits that we need to break!
1. Wearing clothes immediately after buying them. People are covered in bacteria and parasites, and it’s all part of our personal microbiome--but that doesn’t mean you need to share your biome with someone else. People use their dirty hands to flip through the clothes racks, try on clothes without undergarments, and sneeze out in the open, spreading germs and bacteria everywhere. Ladies specifically have a high count of fecal matter in bathing suits and lingerie. Always try on those garments with your underwear on. Immediately toss them in the washer once you get home so that you can wear your new clothes with clean confidence.
2. Never changing out your toothbrush. This is an easy one to forget about. You use it twice every day, and it is supposed to clean one of the dirtiest places on your body, and it lives in the bathroom. There are so many reasons why this should be something that we rotate out much more often than we do. The bristles get worn out, plaque builds up at the base of the bristles and it can collect bacteria from the damp conditions of the bathroom. Not to mention that several studies done show a higher level of fecal bacteria on toothbrushes that are stored near the toilet. The first order of business is to store your toothbrush as far away as possible from the porcelain throne. Next, have an arsenal of replacements ready to go. Change it out about once a month.
3. Not washing your hairbrush/comb. When was the last time you washed your hairbrush? If the answer is “never,” then you’d be like most others. Our hairbrush needs a good scrubbing every now and then. If you use hair products or don’t wash your hair every day, then you need to wash your brush even more often. The base of your hairbrush builds up dead skin cells, dust, products, oil, and bacteria from your scalp. If you never wash it, then you’re reapplying thousands of bacteria back to your scalp with every stroke. If you’re wondering how to clean your hairbrush, then watch this video.
4. Waiting too long to wash the sheets. Chores are no fun, but there’s nothing like fresh sheets. If you wait to long to change the sheets, then you can be sleeping on a petri dish of gross. Our sheets collect dead skin, sweat, dust mites, bacteria, dander, pollen, and fecal matter. All of the gross things--and we spend hours there every night. You should wash or change the sheets once a week to keep your bed fresh.
5. Not cleaning your smartphone. Humans have dirty hands, and we are constantly touching our smartphones. Our smart devices have become part of a necessity to us, and so we are constantly handling them with our hands and our face. We put them down on tables, in pockets, and lay them on public countertops. We need to take a sanitizing wipe and give it a good once over at least once a day. It’ll scrub the grime and bacteria off, and help you stop spreading germs all over.
These aren’t difficult changes, but they can do wonders for your health and wellbeing. The good news is that it doesn’t take a high amount of effort to change your toothbrush or wipe down your smartphone. Washing your hands a little more and cleaning the things that we use everyday will stop the spread of disease and keep you healthier.
