Someone Not Washing Hands After Bathroom Germs and Touch Question (phobias, infect)

[VTsnowbird]

How many germy surfaces did you touch when you went out to buy air freshener? If you start thinking about this stuff you will drive yourself crazy. Wash your pitcher, keep your hands and yourself clean, and find something else to worry about.

Oh, and get some bottled water to keep in the fridge for him.

[ClaraC]

Here's the deal, OP.

You expected the guy to touch his junk and then grab the cold water faucet handle right exactly where you will put your hand later.

Directly passing whatever germs you perceive are on his hands, right directly on to your hand.

This idea that washing our hands after peeing doesn't spread germs is just wrong - you are putting the VERY germs you hope will get washed away on the handle, where the next person in 5 minutes or so (in a public bathroom) will place their hand.

Although I wash after (basically, wet your fingertips a little and then dry them) because it's what's expected, it doesn't help keep down germs.

Unless of course you are extremely sloppy and are liable to have urine or fecal material on your hands and then you go cut cold salad ingredients.

[ericjustin2]

Originally Posted by jaminhealth

Maybe just NOT be around when he wants to visit. You don't have to open your door if he brings you that much distress.

Hey there. Well whenever he comes by the apartment, all he does is just chat and sit down on my futon. Sometimes he has used my bathroom. Few times he has looked at what i have in my apartment like food like pasta thats just lying there. But the thing is back then when he did this, it wasn't right after he went to the bathroom so it didn't bother me much at all. And even if it did, well there is plastic over it so no big deal. He has touched several of my food but they are packaged so no big deal.


The issue was he asked for water and i didn't have any bottles of water available. If i did, i give that to him and don't have to stress over it. Thus when he went and grabbed the water pitcher and then poured it, i thought... oh man he just touched his junk and didn't wash his hands and say within 10 seconds touches the water pitcher on the kitchen table and even takes the lid out and inspects it like imagine how a jeweler inspects jewelry. So i thought... wtf man.


Also to the person said well after someone washes their hands, well they touch the knob to turn on the sink. Well everything has to do that. That is no issue. Now if he washed his hands then touched my water pitcher... it wouldn't bother me. I would probably still wash it with hot water and disk liquid soap. But he touched everything. So everytime if i drink water from pouring water onto my glass cup, i can't get that image out of my head. Someone here did mention they find this very disgusting as well so i know i can't be the only one. If he had just touched the handle bar to pour the water in plastic cup of water, obviously this wouldn't be any issue. But you cannot do that because you have to hold the lid a bit in case the water might spill.

[Katarina Witt]

Originally Posted by ClaraC

Here's the deal, OP.

You expected the guy to touch his junk and then grab the cold water faucet handle right exactly where you will put your hand later.

Directly passing whatever germs you perceive are on his hands, right directly on to your hand.

This idea that washing our hands after peeing doesn't spread germs is just wrong - you are putting the VERY germs you hope will get washed away on the handle, where the next person in 5 minutes or so (in a public bathroom) will place their hand.

Although I wash after (basically, wet your fingertips a little and then dry them) because it's what's expected, it doesn't help keep down germs.

Unless of course you are extremely sloppy and are liable to have urine or fecal material on your hands and then you go cut cold salad ingredients.

Oh. My. God!

1. Washing your hands frequently on general principals is a good idea.
2. While urine is sterile (unless you have a UTI) toilet paper and the feces it picks up when you wipe are not.
3. Have you never heard of the "fecal-oral" route of disease spread? If you had a bowel movement, you will almost certainly have some feces on your hands, even if you can't see it. For women, with all the plumbing close together, you're likely to pick up some feces with wiping, even if you just urinate.

You're somewhat correct about the faucet handles, which is why most public restrooms have remote handles these days. Even with regular handles like you find in a home, the soap you (hopefully) use does kill most of the germs, and you can always use a paper towel, piece of toilet paper, your elbow, whatever to shut off the faucet if you're *that* concerned, which it sounds like you're not, anyway. Most people are immune to the germs found in their own homes.

After spending all winter trying to tell people handwashing won't stop the spread of flu by much, now we're dealing with people who think it's unnecessary to wash after using the toilet!

[ericjustin2]

Again he did this very unexpectedly and quickly. When he comes back to the living room from the bathroom, i didn't think much except he would just go back and sit on the couch. He basically grabbed the water pitcher where i couldn't even react. He also was looking at my food and even said you mind if i help myself with some bread? Now i don't mind this. The issue was he was looking at it... touching it and then opening the bread loaf bag himself... this is probably like a few minutes right after he touched the water pitcher. But to me, that isn't that big of a deal because well after im done with the bread, well i dont keep the container as its plastic. But if someone wants some food in my apartment where you have to open the packaging, well i would prefer to do it myself and give it to them. Thus wash my hands first etc. He also took some snacks as well but no issue because those are in a package. But the water pitcher is a complete different story.


So to others here that don't think its a big deal. So you are telling me if say a neighbor in your building, whos very old and also has lot of health issues... he has many of them... uses your bathroom, then don't wash his hands...then takes your water glass, and inspects it and then touches the entire circle of the drinking area where your mouth drinks from it, you don't find that at least a bit disgusting? Again he touches his junk to pee, then does not wash his hands, then about 10 seconds, he touches your water glass like how a jeweler inspects a piece of jewelry.


If anyone here wouldn't find this a bit disgusting, then i guess im a bit different. And as stupid as this may sound. I would rather have him touch money first and then touch my water lid for the water pitcher as opposed to his junk. Am i ridiculous with saying this?

[jaminhealth]

I keep little bottles of water and give them to friends if and when they ask for water. If he's a friend and you want to be a friend, have some bottles to give him. Lots of OLDer people need to be seen and heard. I have some good friends in my apt bldg who help me and I LOVE to chit chat when they come by with my stuff. But I don't keep them hanging around as they are all in a hurry with their lives. When you don't feel like his visit, don't go to the door....simple.

[jaminhealth]

Originally Posted by ericjustin2

Again he did this very unexpectedly and quickly. When he comes back to the living room from the bathroom, i didn't think much except he would just go back and sit on the couch. He basically grabbed the water pitcher where i couldn't even react. He also was looking at my food and even said you mind if i help myself with some bread? Now i don't mind this. The issue was he was looking at it... touching it and then opening the bread loaf bag himself... this is probably like a few minutes right after he touched the water pitcher. But to me, that isn't that big of a deal because well after im done with the bread, well i dont keep the container as its plastic. But if someone wants some food in my apartment where you have to open the packaging, well i would prefer to do it myself and give it to them. Thus wash my hands first etc. He also took some snacks as well but no issue because those are in a package. But the water pitcher is a complete different story.


So to others here that don't think its a big deal. So you are telling me if say a neighbor in your building, whos very old and also has lot of health issues... he has many of them... uses your bathroom, then don't wash his hands...then takes your water glass, and inspects it and then touches the entire circle of the drinking area where your mouth drinks from it, you don't find that at least a bit disgusting? Again he touches his junk to pee, then does not wash his hands, then about 10 seconds, he touches your water glass like how a jeweler inspects a piece of jewelry.


If anyone here wouldn't find this a bit disgusting, then i guess im a bit different. And as stupid as this may sound. I would rather have him touch money first and then touch my water lid for the water pitcher as opposed to his junk. Am i ridiculous with saying this?

Money is FULL OF GERMS.

[ClaraC]

Originally Posted by Katarina Witt

Oh. My. God!

1. Washing your hands frequently on general principals is a good idea.
2. While urine is sterile (unless you have a UTI) toilet paper and the feces it picks up when you wipe are not.
3. Have you never heard of the "fecal-oral" route of disease spread? If you had a bowel movement, you will almost certainly have some feces on your hands, even if you can't see it. For women, with all the plumbing close together, you're likely to pick up some feces with wiping, even if you just urinate.

You're somewhat correct about the faucet handles, which is why most public restrooms have remote handles these days. Even with regular handles like you find in a home, the soap you (hopefully) use does kill most of the germs, and you can always use a paper towel, piece of toilet paper, your elbow, whatever to shut off the faucet if you're *that* concerned, which it sounds like you're not, anyway. Most people are immune to the germs found in their own homes.

After spending all winter trying to tell people handwashing won't stop the spread of flu by much, now we're dealing with people who think it's unnecessary to wash after using the toilet!

Katarina, geez.

I do wash my hands. All the time. I very, very rarely get sick, and am careful with germs.

I just know what is germy and what isn't. For example, food poisoning is very common in uncooked fruits and vegetables, especially if they are cut and combined, like pico de gallo, for example. That's where you're going to get food poisoning, not from the chicken breast sandwich.

In consumer chemistry we had 8 petri dishes, and had to go around the school and swab surfaces. The toilets were about the cleanest surfaces, and grew little bacteria in the dish, likely because they're cleaned frequently. The germiest surfaces? The handle on the water cooler, and the worst was the outdoor handle to the bathroom door. Whoda thought? Well, me, is who.

I also did an experiement in college. I was in sociology and had to design an experiment. So I went into a bathroom on campus with many stalls, and hid out in the furthest stall. Recording how many women wash hands if they don't know they're being observed. You'd be surprised how many don't. Then for the next phase, I stood at the mirror appearing to fix make up and counted the number of women who wash hands. All. Every single one.

So there you go.

And I thoroughly wash my hands before preparing food, or eating food.

But watch. Next time you're in the bathroom, how many women wet their fingertips. You're not getting rid of ANY germs doing that. And the germs you might be washing off very likely came from the handle ENTERING the restroom.

[jaminhealth]

Originally Posted by ClaraC

Katarina, geez.

I do wash my hands. All the time. I very, very rarely get sick, and am careful with germs.

I just know what is germy and what isn't. For example, food poisoning is very common in uncooked fruits and vegetables, especially if they are cut and combined, like pico de gallo, for example. That's where you're going to get food poisoning, not from the chicken breast sandwich.

In consumer chemistry we had 8 petri dishes, and had to go around the school and swab surfaces. The toilets were about the cleanest surfaces, and grew little bacteria in the dish, likely because they're cleaned frequently. The germiest surfaces? The handle on the water cooler, and the worst was the outdoor handle to the bathroom door. Whoda thought? Well, me, is who.

I also did an experiement in college. I was in sociology and had to design an experiment. So I went into a bathroom on campus with many stalls, and hid out in the furthest stall. Recording how many women wash hands if they don't know they're being observed. You'd be surprised how many don't. Then for the next phase, I stood at the mirror appearing to fix make up and counted the number of women who wash hands. All. Every single one.

So there you go.

And I thoroughly wash my hands before preparing food, or eating food.

But watch. Next time you're in the bathroom, how many women wet their fingertips. You're not getting rid of ANY germs doing that. And the germs you might be washing off very likely came from the handle ENTERING the restroom.

I rinse my hands and don't scrub them and I'm never sick...don't put my hands around my face, I make an effort to keep hands from my face area. So much germ phobia.

[Katarina Witt]

Originally Posted by ClaraC

Katarina, geez.

I do wash my hands. All the time. I very, very rarely get sick, and am careful with germs.

I just know what is germy and what isn't. For example, food poisoning is very common in uncooked fruits and vegetables, especially if they are cut and combined, like pico de gallo, for example. That's where you're going to get food poisoning, not from the chicken breast sandwich.

In consumer chemistry we had 8 petri dishes, and had to go around the school and swab surfaces. The toilets were about the cleanest surfaces, and grew little bacteria in the dish, likely because they're cleaned frequently. The germiest surfaces? The handle on the water cooler, and the worst was the outdoor handle to the bathroom door. Whoda thought? Well, me, is who.

I also did an experiement in college. I was in sociology and had to design an experiment. So I went into a bathroom on campus with many stalls, and hid out in the furthest stall. Recording how many women wash hands if they don't know they're being observed. You'd be surprised how many don't. Then for the next phase, I stood at the mirror appearing to fix make up and counted the number of women who wash hands. All. Every single one.

So there you go.

And I thoroughly wash my hands before preparing food, or eating food.

But watch. Next time you're in the bathroom, how many women wet their fingertips. You're not getting rid of ANY germs doing that. And the germs you might be washing off very likely came from the handle ENTERING the restroom.

Here's what you said: "Although I wash after (basically, wet your fingertips a little and then dry them) because it's what's expected,"

That is NOT washing your hands, and you only do it because it's "expected".

I suggest you go to any food poisoning site. You will find that you can't tell by looking at food whether it's "germy" or not, and that chicken is a very common source of food poisoning.
https://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-l...i/faq-20058034
Chicken food poisoning - A guide to Food poisoning

Perhaps you should have taken a food safety class instead.

Id'a thought so too!

Probably not.

Which is what you say you do. It doesn't seem to occur to you that if you washed your hands better, you'd wash off that dirt from the door.