So, apparently reusable bags can be full of germs.

[conuly]

This is because most people don't wash them frequently... if at all.

As the commenters noted, this study was paid for by the same people who make plastic bags, and who have a vested interest in keeping people from banning them in, say, California.

However, as a political ploy, this one fails miserably. First, because it's easy enough to remove the germs just by washing your bag, as the study showed. Second, because it's equally easy to prevent cross-contamination by, say, designating some bags to hold meat and others to hold fruit and vegetables - a step so basic, I don't know why some people don't do it! Third, because you should always wash your food before you eat it, or cook it at high enough temperatures to kill anything, or both. And fourth, because people clearly aren't dropping like flies from their unwashed bags, even if by rights they really ought to be.

So, um... I'm going to do some laundry soon :)

Comments

[conuly]

Surprisingly, toilet seats (public or private) aren't on that list. You could eat your lunch off of the average toilet seat, and be assured it's cleaner than your hands.

[lady-angelina.livejournal.com]

I usually put paper on the seat anyway... not only because half the time, someone's already dribbled on the seat, but also in case, erm... I do the same thing, and it makes it easier to wipe up afterwards. /TMI

But yeah... it's things like sink knobs, door handles, and -- oh my god -- the grab poles and straps on the buses that are laden with germs. X_x I remember this one guy on the bus who kept sneezing and coughing in his hand and then used that same hand to hold onto one of the poles. =P And it doesn't help that more and more, buses have those stupid "customer-controlled" doors in the back where you have to touch the damn things to open them. Not only is it kind of gross, but when I'm carrying loads of things from the store, it's difficult for me to deboard from the back unless the driver takes mercy on me and opens it for me. (Sorry, this is a rant I've had for ages.)

[marveen.livejournal.com]

Toilet seats are just one of my hang-ups, like not liking to eat skins. (Potato skins, apple skins, fish skin, chicken skin, the lot.)

I don't touch toilet seats or handles/flush switches with my hands, period. Most of the time I manage by daintily moving the seat with a foot and flushing with the toe of my shoe. (In the ultramodern pushbutton models, I actually cover my hand with tissue to flush.)

To return to the original topic of your post: you mean some people DON'T wash those things??

[conuly]

Apparently most of the people they asked don't wash them.

[redbird]

I think they're thinking of people like me and cattitude, who have one bag we take to the greenmarket; so, yes, it may have veg and bread and meat it in. But just about everything is wrapped (maybe not a whole melon); this is mostly not having an extra, slightly solider bag to put the flimsy plastic vegetable bag in.

[dandelion.livejournal.com]

Everything's encased in plastic, so I'd be surprised if there were a significantly higher level of bacteria in there than, say, a handbag. And I'm someone who actually does wash my reusable bags (about once a month, when I probably use them three or four times a month).

[lady-angelina.livejournal.com]

To them, I say, "Nice try, bro." -_- Aside from the lame "germ" issue they bring up, I can't stand those flimsy plastic bags, especially the ones they issue in the grocery store these days. They're teeny tiny, so you literally can only use one for a box of cereal and maybe one other thing, so if you have to ride the bus to go grocery shopping, you end up looking like a bag lady with a dozen bags for just about as many items. Plus, they freaking fall apart easily, even if you double- or triple-bag them. At least the reusable bags don't tend to have either of those issues... they're studier and larger (not to mention less junky looking).

[cumaeansibyl.livejournal.com]

Thanks for the reminder, I needed to wash my bags!