Germ Encrusted Tooth Brush

You’ve probably heard the story about toothbrushes and toilets.

The theory goes that even if it is several feet away, airborne germs from a toilet flush will infect your toothbrush with fecal bacteria. It sounds pretty scary, and many people now make sure to close the cover of their toilet before they flush.

The problem is that this attitude causes people to miss the real source of worrisome germs—the brush itself. Studies have found that your toilet is one of the cleaner parts of your house, but as your toothbrush spends a lot of time removing bacteria, it ends up coated with it. Now if you have a strong immune system you should be fine, but keeping your toothbrush away from the toilet is not an effective way to keep it hygienic. What the bacteria on your toothbrush really need in order to thrive is moisture.

So if you really want to avoid germs on your toothbrush, the best thing you can do is keep it dry.