Take a guess?
Only 5%!
And that's based on almost 4,000 people they observed--but how many would've washed correctly if they thought no one was watching?
The dirty stats (while under observation):
- 23% didn't use soap.
- 15% of men and 7% of women didn't even use water.
- Average washed for just 6 seconds! (CDC says you need at least 20 seconds with soap and water to kill germs)
From what I've seen, unless their is a touchless water faucet and automatic towel dispenser, not too many people wash their hands--they don't want to get them dirty by touching the same bathroom devices that the other people just touched.
Another no-no for people is touching the bathroom door handle--more germs!
What do some people do--they use (wads of) toilet seat protectors to pull the door open--then guess what's missing for the next guy or gal?
Most public bathrooms are disgusting--if everyone could just have their own, they would keep it clean out of self-interest and maybe wash their hands a little more too.
Next time we have a recession and need to invest in "shovel ready" infrastructure projects to keep America working--how about we build some (read lots!) clean bathrooms and throw in the automatic wash features, pretty please. ;-)
(Source Photo: Andy Blumenthal)
