6 Household Items You Didn't Realize Were Totally Disgusting

6

Your Smartphone Is Probably Dirtier Than A Public Toilet (Especially If You Work In A Hospital)

Way back in 2009, we talked about how filthy an office telephone can be, housing up to 25,127 germs per square inch. Now that everyone carries slick, modern, super advanced smartphones, we're probably much cleaner, right? Hahaha, nope. Not even close.

The problem with smartphones is that they're portable and super handy, and we have a tendency to whip them out anywhere and everywhere, from restaurants to restrooms. You may know restrooms as "those places with poop particles floating around everywhere." But how dirty could our smartphones things be? According to researchers from the University of Arizona, about ten times dirtier than the average toilet seat. Which is rather troubling for an item intended to be pressed closely to your face. Like, your undies are almost definitely dirtier than your phone, but if you're talking into them, you're probably using them wrong.

T-MobileThe "T" doesn't stand for thongs.

One study tested smartphones belonging to secondary school students. Not only were the phones loaded with potentially harmful bacteria, but researchers hypothesized that they also contributed to the spread of illnesses throughout the community. OK, so you probably suspected teenagers were doing that anyway, but what about doctors and nurses? Surely, they of all people understand the importance of keeping things clean? That's ... not what the evidence says.

Studies carried out everywhere from the U.S. to Egypt to Australia tested phones belonging to hospital workers and found that a clear majority (75 to 100 percent) carried bacteria. In France, 42 out of 109 hospital workers' smartphones carried viruses, while in Turkey, 25 out of 200 tested positive for MRSA -- you know, that superbug that fills your body with pus-oozing boils. So if you've got a hospital stay coming up, here's hoping your phone-addicted doctor doesn't have another patient with flesh-eating bacteria.

5

Your Reusable Grocery Bags Are Full Of Disgusting Bacteria, And Possibly Poop

If you're reducing your carbon footprint via reusable grocery bags, congratulations for helping the environment! And the opposite of congratulations for possibly contaminating your food and personal space with bacteria. And, oh yeah, poop.

According to researchers at the University of Arizona and Loma Linda University, only 3 percent of shoppers who have reusable bags ever wash them. As a result, half of the bags tested carried coliform bacteria, while 8 percent contained E. coli. That's E. coli as in "the stuff growing in fresh turds." And don't assume you're in the clear just because you're not hopping a squat over your bag; the fecal bacteria can make its way in there through transfer from a grocery cart, checkout counter, or food packaging. In other words, that (literal) shit is everywhere, including your spiffy bag.

4

Your Shower Head Blasts You With Concentrated Germs, And The Curtain Is Even Worse

By now you're probably feeling a bit germy, but before you hop in the shower to de-funk, there are a few things you should know. As it happens, bacteria love a hot shower even more than we do, so you're probably covering your body in a whole lot more than soap.

3

Any Surface In Your Home That Gets Dusty Is Full Of Toxic Chemicals

Nobody likes dust, but that doesn't stop us from becoming big-time collectors. Trouble is, dust isn't merely unsightly stuff that makes you sneeze and casts aspersions on your housekeeping abilities. It's also full of toxic substances that can be more than a little harmful to your health. So "being incredibly hard to clean off Legos" isn't the worst part about it after all.

A study conducted by the Natural Resources Defense Council found that household dust contains chemicals and microparticle residue from cleaners, electronics, cosmetic products, construction materials, and various other substances in your home. The team found 45 different toxic chemicals that were common in dust, with some of the most popular being flame retardants, phenols, and phthalates. Those sound like words we made up, but they're chemicals associated with cancer, infertility, development problems in children, and other fun stuff like that.

"So what? It's not like I'm licking the dust off my desk, Cracked!" That's not how it works, dear straw reader. Keep in mind that the toxic dust doesn't only collect on your flat surfaces. It's in the air you breathe, and when you touch dusty stuff and get it on your skin, those chemicals can be absorbed into your body. It might be time to invest in a microfiber cloth or 20, is what we're saying.

2

The Single Dirtiest Thing In Your Home Is Your Kitchen Sponge

Turns out sponges are even better at holding bacteria than they are at holding water. They're really good at it, actually. They're like ... some sort of thing that's great at soaking up stuff, we don't know.

1

Your Washing Machine Is Filthy And Coats Your Clothes In Bacteria And Diseases

A few years ago, we talked about how your laundry gets covered in poop from being washed with underwear, and how one load of undies fills the wash water with 100 million E. coli bacteria, give or take a skid mark. While that's still very true and very gross, the nasty doesn't stop there.