What has tiny bristles, lives in your bathroom and can house five of the nastiest germs, including the flu virus?
Yep you guessed it- it’s your toothbrush.
It’s sort of funny that if we dropped a bit of food on a clean(ish) kitchen floor we would throw it away not wanting to possibly subject our body to any unwanted bacteria action or for the less germ phobic may pick it up, eat it and think what the heck I’ll take my chance! However your little toothbrush lives its life in the bathroom- getting covered in not only our icky mouth germs but also gross bathroom bugs!
Did you know that viruses and bacteria can live for weeks on your toothbrush so every time you brush you could be making yourself ill.
So how can you protect yourself and your family from the perils of toothbrushing?
1) Change your toothbrush every 6 weeks, or after you or a member of the family has been ill. Germs from one person’s toothbrush can spread if they are all stored together.
2) Wash it, give your toothbrush a thorough rinse with tap water to remove debris.. Then was it in antibacterial soap or soak it for 5 minutes in a antibacterial mouthwash.
3) Don’t share your toothbrush, it is just gross.
4) Try deep cleansing your toothbrush. You can but ultraviolet light toothbrush sanitisers which nuke the nasties harboured on your toothbrush.
5) Close the lid of the toilet when you flush, to contain those nasty germs
Know when to let go of your toothbrush. If you have had it longer than 6-8 weeks, have been poorly, if it is showing signs of wear and tear then it’s time to chuck it away.