What would you say if we told you the handle on your office coffee pot contains up to 34 times more bacteria than a school toilet seat?
Because that, fellow office dwellers, is exactly what new research has found.
The study of office germs also discovered that office printer buttons harbour millions of bacteria - more than a dog’s bowl, in fact.
Meanwhile door handles around the office contain almost three times more bacteria as your bathroom door handle at home. Grim.
The research comes from office resource provider Hloom, who went around different offices swabbing five common surfaces for bacteria samples. Here’s what else they discovered...
Research found that the handle of your office water dispenser contains four times more bacteria than a chopping board.
The meeting room door handle, meanwhile, harbours three-and-a-half times more bacteria than your car steering wheel.
A team of researchers gathered 25 bacteria swabs from five different offices. The values are measured in colony-forming units (CFU) per square inch.
The swabs were tested at an independent laboratory to determine the prevalence and types of bacteria present on each surface.
The office copier and coffee pots tended to be the worst offenders where bacteria was concerned.
Researchers also looked at what type of germs reside at work.
Guys, it’s time to stock up on the anti-bacterial wipes.