Hold the Phone: Mobile Obsession Sparks Hygiene Risk

According to a survey carried out by O2 and Sony Mobile, an astonishing 75 per cent of respondents have used their mobile phone whilst on the loo.

Gone are the days of newspapers or magazines being the toilet reading of choice, with our smartphones habitually dragged along instead.

Rather than simply playing Angry Birds, however, it was found 59 per cent sent texts, 45 per cent fired off emails and an unashamed 31 per cent spoke on the phone whilst on the throne.

But there’s a problem …

Although studies have shown nasty microbes that transfer from your hands onto your book or newspapers only survive a couple of minutes, our technological crutches are a different story.

Thanks to surface of a Kindle, iPhone or iPad being plastic, it makes a decidedly more inviting home for microbes, with contaminants likely to survive for several hours.

Smartphones Contaminated With Nasty Microbes

Indeed, a worrying report published on the BBC has shown one in six mobile phones in this country is contaminated with faecal matter, as people forget to wash their hands after relieving themselves.

Consequently,  in an effort to prevent germs spreading, it’s vitally important to wash your hands after every visit to the toilet, as adequate hand washing will help cut the risk of infections.

Regardless of your environment, clean hands are a reliable way to stop infectious diseases such as flu, the common cold and gastrointestinal disorders spreading through contaminated surfaces.

At Initial, we’re well aware of the risks, which is why we offer infection control solutions – hand sanister and surface sanitiser, among others – to protect your employees and your customers.

For more information about infection control solutions to suit your firm, please pick up the phone (away from the toilet, if possible) and speak to a member of the team – we’d be happy to help.