How "germ freaky" are you (infection, blood, hair)

[joey2000]

Just wondering. I admit I'm probably picker than most, esp about food. I observe the "no second rule" ie anything that falls on the ground I will not eat, period. I also am leery about food at "pot luck" gatherings, esp at work - and much more so since I have seen guys (IMO guys are a lot worse about this) use the bathroom, not wash their hands, and come back out to the gathering, handling food etc. :gag:

I'm also grossed out by people who let (for example) their cats up on the kitchen counter and have pet hair everywhere. Even my own hair in food is cause to be pitched, never mind hair from elsewhere.

Non-food wise, things aren't as big of a deal, although I'm more particular than some I'm sure. eg I wasn't exactly wowed when an A/C mainteance guy decided to spit into my flower bed right in front of me, and later get upset when, drenched in sweat (and nasty/grubby looking anyway) he asked if he could change clothes in my bathroom and I refused.

PS I understand some people are much less picky and that's fine, to each their own - but what really bothers me perhaps most of all is that some such people are totally disrespectful of such things, ie just because it doesn't bother them, they don't even try to understand or appreciate that it bothers others (eg the ones who don't wash their hands after using the bathroom). The height of rudeness IMO.

[ConeyIsBabe]

Since this is a thread about "germ freaks" I'll submit this thought for consideration ..... have you ever imagined how many germs are lurking on top of that rolling countertop at the supermarket? You know, where people place packages of raw meat, raw chicken, (e-coli, salmonella, mad-cow disease) and fruits, veggies, everything else ~ and then go home and place those same items on top of the clean kitchen countertop ?? YUCK

[Basiliximab]

I'm not at all. Granted, I'll wash my hands before I eat something if I'd been out at work all day or just came back from shopping or something like that. Generally, I will throw out something that's dropped on the floor--but there's been a few times when I haven't (tablets both times I can remember). My philosophy is if your immune system works, use it. Before I started taking proton pump inhibitors (which raises the pH in your stomach), I harldy ever got sick; perhaps once every other year maybe, and even then not that bad. Before I started working in the healthcare field where you're required to wash your hands a lot, I used to get sick even less.

I'm not worried about germs getting me sick because I know I have a good immune system (even with the proton pump inhibitors, though I'm working on trying to get off those). Though I do make sure to wash up at work and stuff like that since it's the people who don't have that good immune systems I'm concerned about; though I might not get sick, I might be a vector for someone else who can get sick from the germs I carry.

[Lilac Farm]

I'm not at all freaked out about germs in the natural world (just cautious, like not drinking from streams while hiking, etc) but I am mindful of what I bring home from other places, as other posters mentioned. Also don't like potlucks or buffets where other people use their hands to pick up food.

Forget buying salad at the sneezebar in the store! I almost never get sick or have colds, and I'd like to keep it that way.

[T. Damon]

I remember reading an article in the NYT by a pediatrician a few months ago- I think it was in the Science Times section-and she encouraged the practice of kids to go out and touch absolutely everything and not wash their hands before eating.
As counterintuitive as it seems, the science being that the more things someone is exposed to -especially while young- the more natural defenses are built up to fight common germs and viruses. I'm sure this can be taken to an unhealthful extreme but it does show that inexperienced parents often freak out a little too much over their kids doing what kids do.

Now I admit I'm very careful when handling meats, especially chicken, (I've worked in restaurants for decades-cooking professionally for years) making sure I'm not cross contaminating when I'm preparing foods -keep my kitchen surfaces very clean and sanitized- and make it a practice to avoid washing my hands in the kitchen sink- using a utility sink close by or the bathroom sink instead and wash my hands pretty frequently. I disinfect my sponges frequently in a diluted bleach soak overnight or nuke them in the micro and use cheese cloth towels for counters that I toss to the laundry daily. But other than common clean practices I'm not very freaked out by germs at all, I certainly would not automatically exclude from eating absolutely anything that fell to the floor, I keep my floors pretty clean too.

Slightly off topic, I'm amused by people who would freak out when they spot a tiny worm in an organic salad or something similar like a fruit fly in a glass of wine (this being the best sign that the salad or other organic food item is free of pesticides and very healthy to eat) as if any one of us isn't ingesting 1000s of worms and insects every year just by allowable amounts in both processed and unprocessed foods that the gov't has set. Its all a little overly dramatic for me.

[Hopes]

I'm only a germ freak during flu season.

[glenn_1000]

Yeah, the check-out belt is gross sometimes. You know the ones in front of you with six giant packs of bright red meat dripping in blood and five 12-packs of diet coke in the cart (as if they are on a diet). I always shop with a basket and place it on the belt. You are less likely to get sick eating off the floor than someone coughing in line behind you.

[nikos]

After getting infection in my blood and in my heart, I am more cautious about germs. I am shocked at the way people pay little attention to basic cleanliness. I wash my hands frequently and keep cans of spray handy to disinfect counters and bathrooms and handles etc. If you every had to go thru the infections I have, you will wish you were more careful. I carry hand sanitizer and I always wipe off the grocery carts with the wipes provided by the store. I almost died from the heart infection. I am also anemic and take iron every day. You can't be too careful as far as I'm concerned. One of the things I hate to see is a person alowing their pets lick them in the mouth. yuk!

[Miaiam]

Oh I try to pay attention but I guess it is somehow impossible to avoid germs at all. I am not a specialist, have no special knowledge, but these are just some of the things I do. Here it goes:

When walking into home, wash hands first thing. I don't touch anything other than the door and the bathroom faucet before that.

Never wear shoes indoors. Leave them as close to the front door as possible.

Always have antibacterial lotion handy. Use it before and after eating out.

No "whatever seconds" rule. Who the heck invented that?! If it fell to the floor, I won't eat it.

Wash fruits and vegetables thoroughly before eating. Peel them if needed.

On a large bowl of water, mix 1/5 oz bleach and soak leaf vegetables for 5 mins., discard water and wash them thoroughly before eating.

As you cook, wash your hands (very!) constantly.

There are many other rules I try to follow, I will post them later if I remember them.

[Niftybergin]

I'm not at all germ-freaky. When I'm in public, I'm a bit more fastidious -- I'll wash my hands before I eat or at least use santizing gel or a santizing wipe. As I exit bathrooms, I'll use my paper towels or part of my clothing to open the door, so I don't have to touch the handle. And I sanitize my hands after trips to the dog park, if I'm not able to wash them. But that's about as germ-freaky as I get.

At home, I'm particularly unconcerned, but hey...they're my germs. I should be better with food-safety at home -- I use one cutting board for everything, and I use a sponge, and blah-blah -- but I don't fret about it.

Honestly, I really do believe germs are good for me, so they don't scare me much.