You might think that your toothbrush is perfectly clean after you use it morning and night, but new research suggests that there is a big chance that bacteria – namely faecal matter – could be found among the bristles – especially if you share your bathroom with other people.
The study revealed that there is a 60% chance that your toothbrush contains faecal bacteria; this number jumps to 80% if you live in a house with a shared bathroom. The research was carried out at Connecticut’s Quinnipiac University and involved testing toothbrushes found in the communal bathrooms for faecal coliforms – the bacteria found in human faeces. The bacterium can spread onto a toothbrush through the air, usually after the toilet seat has been left up after flushing.
An average of 9.4 occupants left their toothbrushes in each of the communal bathrooms and researchers found that 54.85% of the brushes contained the faecal bacteria, even those that were covered or rinsed regularly. Student researcher Lauren Aber said that the ‘main concern’ would be the presence of faecal matter from other people and she recommended ‘better hygiene practices’ for students and people who share bathrooms, as well as improved storage for the brushes.