4 things you should clean at home – 03/18/2023 – Balance

4 things you should clean at home – 03/18/2023 – Balance


Each home is different from the other, but house cleaning is usually one of the priorities of all its residents.

Some people do the cleaning every day. Others once a week. Still others supplement routine cleaning with a semi-annual or annual deep clean.

According to a survey by the National Institute of Cleaning in the United States, 70% of homes carry out at least one thorough annual cleaning.

For many, the most important thing is the kitchen, and for others, the bathroom.

We tend to focus our efforts on the oven, the toilet and the carpets, where we know for sure that germs, fungi, mites and bacteria accumulate.

But there are some specific objects and spaces that we don’t always pay the same attention to. In them, dirt also accumulates, and sometimes in even greater proportions than other more obvious places.

You might not clean these four household items…but you should!

the coffee maker

A survey by the Organization for Health and Public Safety of the United States (NSF, its acronym in English) concluded that one of the kitchen objects with the highest number of germs is the coffee maker.

The researchers found up to 67 different types of germs inside the coffee machines they examined.

There are two problems with making coffee. First, hot water can’t wash away all the germs and caffeine is perfect for bacteria growth. And, during the process, there is an accumulation of minerals that ends up forming the sludge that can make it difficult for the machine to work.

Therefore, experts recommend cleaning the coffee maker at least once every three months. And, in devices that use capsules, cleaning is recommended after using 100 units.

the mattress

Yes, cleaning the mattress is not easy. But the human body produces 1.5 grams of dead skin every day, which invariably ends up on the mattress.

A study published by the journal Royal Society Open Science in 2018 demonstrated the cleanliness of the mattress where a human being slept, compared to another, used by a chimpanzee. The result was that humans soil the mattress nearly 30% more than their tree cousins.

This dirt is the accumulation of dead skin, dust and sweat, which are breeding grounds for dust mites and bacteria.

Experts point out that, in recent years, new methods of cleaning mattresses have been developed. And it is also recommended to place the mattress in the sun to reduce humidity and to pass the vacuum cleaner to control the presence of mold.

reusable shopping bags

The fight against climate change brought special attention to disposable plastic bags, which began to be replaced by more ecological products.

Many households started to adopt reusable bags to avoid the consumption of disposable bags. But they never leave the car or the supermarket cart.

“These bags contain more traces of fecal material and bacteria like AND. coli than our underwear”, according to microbiologist Charles P. Gerba, from the University of Arizona, in the United States, told the AARP news portal.

“If you use the same bags to carry raw meat and raw vegetables, you can make a ‘salmonella salad’ very easily,” added Gerba.

The US National Institute of Cleanliness recommends that reusable bags be hand washed (as the washing machine can destroy them) at least once a week.

the dishwashing sponge

The kitchen sponge serves exactly to remove the most difficult dirt from dishes and pans. And, as we use soap for washing and even for its own function of cleaning and degreasing, we think that it is not necessary to pay attention to its own cleanliness.

But a study from the University of Furtwangen, Germany, highlights that there may be more germs and bacteria dangerous for humans in the dishwashing sponge than in the sink itself.

The study found 362 different types of bacteria in the analyzed kitchen sponges — far more than those found in the bathroom.

The reason is the constant humidity. In addition, the sponge is full of empty spaces that are ideal for the growth of germs and bacteria.

The experts’ recommendation is to wash the sponges at least once a week with chlorine or bleach, to avoid this dangerous accumulation of bacteria.

This text originally published here



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