I believe many friends have heard of the statement that bacteria are carried in the toilet and can spread the bacteria for a longer time with the impact of cyclones and water. Is this statement correct? Is it better to cover the toilet lid or not? Let’s take a look at the most scientific explanation collected by the editor, spread it to your relatives and friends, small health and big achievements.
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It is said that when we press the flush toilet button, the instantaneous cyclone in the toilet can bring the bacteria to a height of 6 meters and suspend it for up to several hours. Our toothbrushes and towels may live in the same room with the toilet, and human health is naturally vulnerable to bacteria.
Dr. Philip of New York University pointed out that if the toilet lid is opened when flushing, the instantaneous cyclone in the toilet can bring bacteria or microorganisms up to 6 meters high in the air and suspend it in the air for several hours, then landing on walls and toothbrushes, mouthwash cups, towels. Nowadays, most families use the toilet, wash, and shower in the bathroom. Toothbrushes, mouthwash cups, towels, etc. live in the same room with the toilet, so they are naturally susceptible to bacterial contamination. Therefore, you should develop the habit of covering the toilet lid when flushing.
Judging from the many papers cited in two medical reviews released in 2012, the cyclones produced by pumping are indeed related to the transmission of microorganisms, and the habit of covering the toilet lid when flushing is also worthy of advocating. However, when these studies are spread on social platforms, there are a lot of key information in the study: —— Which microorganisms may be transmitted through this pathway? How wide is the scope of spread of these microorganisms? How many potential harm does microorganisms after spreading and spreading have to the human body? These are ignored, compressed to a simple conclusion, and increase the "Momentary cyclone in the toilet can bring bacteria or microorganisms up to 6 meters high in the air and suspend in the air for up to several hours." These studies have not mentioned details.
Not all microorganisms are “ ” ” ” ” ” ” ” ” ” ” ” ” ” ” ” ” ” ” ” ” ” ” ” ” ” ” ” ” ” ” ” ” ” ” ” ” ” ” ” ” ” ” ” ” ” ” ” ” ” ” ” ” ” ” ” ” ” ” ” ” ” A 2005 study found that salmonella cultured in toilets can aggregate into a structure called "biofilm" and firmly rooted in the sewer. Because there is such a bacteria "reserve &rdquo", people can still find them in the toilet 12 days after the experiment ends. This also increases the possibility that they can propagate through pumping cyclones. Other microorganisms were unable to develop deeper, so they turned their attention to the opposite direction. As early as 1980, scientists discovered that bacteria containing more lipids in cells were more likely to be enriched on the surface of water. If there is a cyclone that can bring up the microorganisms in the water, they will be the “ Pioneer” in the microorganisms.
However, the characteristics of these microorganisms themselves are not enough to allow them to spread from the toilet to the air. The magnitude of the power of the cyclone also determines the scope of the spread. What is interesting is that people still have only a little understanding of the physical characteristics of this cyclone so far. The only thing that can be confirmed is that this cyclone will change with the different types of toilets.
The bacterial infection capacity of toilets is limited
Due to the different microorganisms adopted in the experiment, the transmission ranges are also different (the experimental toilets are mostly siphon). Escherichia coli will be concentrated in a range of about 1 meter in diameter centered on the toilet within two hours after flushing. Salmonella can spread to the same range within 30 minutes, while Clostridium mainly gathers within 25 cm of toilet seat to toilet within 60 minutes.
In some experiments that have been observed for a long time, microorganisms can diffuse to the entire bathroom at extremely low concentrations (only 20% of the petri dishes on the wall have bacteria growth, and up to 5 colonies are grown in a single petri dish; only 5% of the petri dishes in the bathtub have bacteria growth, but up to 100 colonies are grown in a single petri dish), which is also related to the mixing and diffusion of droplets containing microorganisms and air.
However, in these studies, there were no records of microorganisms spreading to a height of 6 meters. As for how long these microorganisms can stay in the air, there is no conclusion.
In some extreme cases, microorganisms transmitted through toilet cyclones may have an impact on human health. Tuberculosis has a lot of lipids and is prone to accumulate in the upper layer of residual water on the toilet. When a person's gastrointestinal tract is infected with tuberculosis, it will cause diarrhea and cause re-transmission. However, this is estimated to account for less than 5% of the total infection cases. Another possibility is that microorganisms transmitted through toilet cyclones are household names —— SARS virus. A report on the SARS outbreak in Taoda Garden, Hong Kong in 2003 speculated that the excrement of SARS patients who had initially developed may have spread rapidly through the sewers and exhaust fans on the floor, causing the SARS outbreak in the entire building. However, these are either extreme situations or unproven research speculations.
Develop the good habit of flushing the toilet lid
No matter which microorganism wants to cause disease, it requires a certain pathogenic dose. In the experiment, the researchers evenly mixed microorganisms with feces or culture medium into suspension to test, which naturally contributes to the spread of microorganisms. In real life, only diarrhea or vomiting is close to the conditions in the experiment. In other words, under normal circumstances, urination and drowning will only limit the spread of microorganisms and the concentration in the air will be lower. However, the concentration of microorganisms suspended by cyclones in the air can vary by hundreds of times depending on the type. Therefore, whether the microorganisms brought by toilet cyclones can cause disease remains to be further studied in the future.
Judging from the existing research results, some microorganisms are more likely to accumulate around the toilet. The cyclones during toilet flushing can indeed cause the spread of microorganisms. Some measures can reduce microorganisms that spread through cyclones. The easiest way is to cover the toilet seat while flushing. This simple method can reduce the splashed microbial content to 1/12 of the time you don't cover the cover. In addition, regularly cleaning the toilet and water tank with disinfectant water can also limit the residue of microorganisms in the toilet. Although the spread range and time of these microorganisms are unknown, covering the toilet lid when flushing the toilet and regularly cleaning the toilet and water tank with disinfectant water can indeed help us reduce potential health risks.