News flash, our cell phones are gross!
In a recent study conducted by Tech Insider, a division of Business Insider, the germs and bacteria found to be thriving on cell phones is scary enough to convince all of us to start carrying disinfectant wipes.
Tech Insider took samples from 19 different cell phones and sent the swabs to Dr. Susan Whittier, Associate Professor of Clinical Pathology and Cell Biology at Columbia University.
And the results were pretty disgusting.
Both the front and back of the cell phones were swabbed, leaving 38 samples up for testing. The samples were taken to the lab where they were swabbed on agar plates, those nifty circular dishes that help bacteria grow faster.
The agar plates were then placed into an incubator set at 98.6 degrees, the average temperature of a human.
After 24 hours, the plates were checked to see if any bacteria had grown, and if so what type of bacteria was found on each cell phone.
Surprisingly, all but two cell phones, four swabs, had some trace of bacteria found on them.
The most common form of bacteria found was the same type of bacteria found on a person’s hands. But one cell phone had the bacteria strain known as MRSA.
Out of the 19 volunteers, 75 percent said they use their phone while in the bathroom. Those who said they use their phone while in the bathroom had the bacteria associated with stool or feces on their phone.
Overall, most of the phones were found to have somewhere between 20 to 50 different colonies of bacteria on them.
Tech Insider did provide a disclaimer saying the study was conducted on a small sample of participants, and the results do not necessarily reflect that of the general population.
But when you think about all the places your phone travels to, do you think the results would change, even with a larger sample group? Let us know!
Want to watch the video of the study? Click here.
