Keyboards and Toilet Seats

What if I suggested that you’re about to handle something with five times the bacteria of a toilet seat? I’m guessing you’d be looking around to find what I’m talking about.

Er... it’s right in front of you…

Yep, your computer keyboard harbours five times more bugs than your average ‘throne’. So the next time you get a tummy bug, look no further. It’s so common that it has a name; ‘qwerty tummy’.

In fact one keyboard discovered during research was so dangerous that the microbiologist studying it ordered it immediately quarantined. It was one hundred and fifty time over accepted microbial limits and five times as filthy as a toilet seat.

How does it happen? What do you think happens to food that is dropped anywhere? It rots and becomes infested with bacteria. That’s exactly how keyboards get in such a disgusting state; eating as you browse.

Scientists swabbed 33 keyboards for food poisoning bugs (e.coli, coliforms, staphylococcus aureus and enterobacteria). They then compared their findings with lavatory seats and lavatory door handles.

They immediately condemned four keyboards as potential health hazards and one was "condemned".

Two secreted "warning levels" of staphylococcus aureus and two others had "worryingly elevated" levels of coliforms and enterobacteria, "putting users at high risk of becoming ill from contact".

Researchers said the findings were typical of offices all over Britain. They added that poor personal hygiene, such as dodging hand washing after going to the lavatory, may also contribute.

Think about it; rotting food, with a sprinkling of faecal matter, then you type a few words... and reach for a sandwich….

"Most people don't give much thought to the grime that builds up on their PC, but if you don't clean your computer, you might as well eat your lunch off a lavatory seat."

Scientists found that one in ten people never clean their keyboard, while 20 per cent never clean their mouse. The report said, "Most people don't give much thought to the grime that builds up on their PC, but if you don't clean your computer, you might as well eat your lunch off a lavatory seat."

Do you share your toothbrush? Of course not. Do you share your keyboard? Have you thought what it is you are sharing? Advice given includes turning the keyboard upside down and shaking it, but I’m very sceptical that this would clean it.