10 things in your home that are dirtier than your toilet seat

Bathrooms have a crappy reputation.Many Americans spend hours scrubbing the loo, with 1 in 5 saying they’d give up half their annual salary for a bathroom that stayed clean and sanitized forever.But despite its grimy notoriety, the toilet isn’t the germiest thing under your roof.A study found that some of the biggest hot spots for bacteria, mold and other microbes are hiding elsewhere in the home — while the toilet seat ranked surprisingly low by comparison.Researchers behind the NSF International Household Germ Study had volunteers in the homes of 22 families swab 30 common household items, testing for bacteria, yeast and mold.

Their results challenged one of the biggest cleaning myths: The bathroom isn’t the dirtiest in the house.Instead, the kitchen claimed the grubby crown, with food-preparation areas harboring more bacteria and signs of fecal contamination than many bathroom surfaces.Researchers found coliform — a family of bacteria that includes salmonella and E.

coli and is an indicator of potential fecal contamination — on more than 75% of dish sponges and rags, 45% of kitchen sinks, 32% of countertops and 18% of cutting boards.Unwashed produce, raw meat and poultry, failing to wash your hands after using the bathroom and even pets are among the most common sources of coliform in the home.By comparison, the highest levels found in the bathroom were 27% of toothbrush holders and 9% of bathroom faucets.

Toilet seats, meanwhile, contained coliform on just 5% of samples.The kitchen also topped the list for yeast and mold, which were found on 86% of dish sponges and rags, 50% of coffee reservoirs, 68% of computer keyboards and 64% of toothbrush holders.Staph bacteria appeared in more than 5% of households, with the highest levels found on pet toys (23%) and dish sponges and rags (18%).Toilet seats, on the other hand, contained yeast and mold in 27% of samples and staph in just 5%, making them considerably cleaner than many everyday items people t...