A colony on your phone: With E.coli and S.aureus, your smartphone is as dirty as your toilet seat

A new study has revealed that your smartphones and personal devices may be some of the dirtiest objects that you carry, as they contain bacteria usually found in human and cockroach faeces.

In a survey consisting of over 500 users and their smartphones, 100 per cent of the sample that was tested returned positive for E.coli and Faecal Streptococci. The survey was part of a study looking into harmful microbes that plague our devices.

A colony of germs right on your smartphone
Apart from E.coli and faecal Streptococci the germ that causes food poisoning, Bacillus cereus, and pneumonia-causing S. aureus, were also found on over 90 per cent of the samples tested.

While none contained Salmonella, half of the samples contained P. aeruginosa, which is frequently discovered in cockroach poo.  

Also read: It’s not the bin lid! THIS is the germiest spot in the kitchen. Indians watch out

“We were eager to find out just how prevalent harmful bacteria is on our mobile phone screens, and what kinds of bacteria are the most common,” said Sarah McConomy, COO of SellCell, the organisation that conducted the research. 

What makes the study even scarier is that the sample swabs were taken from the centre of the display.

“The findings were truly startling, with many types of germs coming from human excrement, emphasising the importance of people completely cleaning and sanitising their mobile phones more frequently,” said McConomy.

Why cleaning and sterilising your phones regularly might be a good idea
Perhaps the most disturbing finding was the prevalence of P.Aeruginosa, a bacteria derived straight from cockroaches and their faeces. 

“It’s terrifying to think about cockroaches slithering over our phones and even using them as a toilet when we’re not looking,” exclaimed McConomy.

The phone screens that were examined in the research belonged to men and women aged 22 to 62. 

On the examined screens, faecal Streptococci and Enterococci colonies, which form in both human and animal stomachs and intestines, were identified.

Also read: How Mount Everest has been preserving people’s germs from coughs and sneezes

S.aureus colonies were also discovered in samples, posing the danger of respiratory illnesses, cutaneous infections, and even food poisoning.

How do your phones get these bacteria colonies?
Taking phones into the restroom has been blamed for some of the germs, with experts saying that you can be exposed in as little as five minutes.

When a commode is flushed, bacteria from the content in the commode become airborne, raising the likelihood that it will descend and settle on your phone, especially if you have it out in the open. 

“We then take them with us, on our phone screens, out of the bathroom, and into the rest of our homes, where they may even be liable for disease transmission,” SellCell explained.

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