Office Loo

[DBAHO]

IF you are sick of work, the office may be to blame.

 

Research shows the workplace could be a significant source of illness, with dodgy canteens, a lack of handwashing and "tight buildings" contributing.

 

The Food Safety Information Council says more than 30 per cent of Australian men do not wash their hands after going to the toilet, compared with 8 per cent of women.

 

Of those who wash their hands, 80 per cent of women and 93 per cent of men do not wash them properly.

 

Food safety council statistics show that one in four cases of food poisoning can be traced to work sources, including canteens.

 

And experts say open-plan offices and tight use of building space mean that what's produced in the building, stays in the building exposing workers to a range of nasty bugs.

 

In the handwashing stakes Australians fare better than the British, with half of men and a quarter of women in the UK failing to wash their hands after using the toilet.

 

Foodlink in the UK says bacteria such as e-coli can exist in washrooms for up to eight days, longer than the average stomach upset. And simply flushing the loo distributes bacteria into the air and into workers' lungs, similar to the effect of a sneeze.

 

Curtin University public health expert Dr Vijay Jayasena said many bugs picked up in toilets did not make people sick immediately but could take weeks or longer to affect their health.

 

An Australian survey had shown bathroom door handles were a haven for dangerous bugs, some of which could survive for months.

 

"People who wash their hands after using the toilet still have a very high chance of contamination from the door handle," he said. "This would not be the case if everyone washed their hands."

 

The chance of contamination in the workplace was high because of time pressures.

 

"Everyone is in a hurry," he said. "But it is a serious issue that needs to be taken much more seriously than it is."

[greasywheels121]

This reminds me of something about hotels. The most germ-infested thing in hotel rooms and causes the most illness is the TV remote. Because it's almost the first thing everyone grabs, and the maids never think of cleaning that.