We use our phones for everything: reading the news, working, taking photos, ordering food. They have essentially become an appendage to our bodies, but unlike our hands, we rarely wash them, if ever. For something that’s known to be dirtier than a toilet seat, we bring our phone everywhere, from the bathroom to the dinner table—and it’s disgusting.
There are many benefits to putting your phone away when eating. Not staring into a phone at dinner deepens our relationship with our tablemates, helps us enjoy our food, and can make us happier. It also keeps thousands of bacteria away from our hands.
A study of high school students’ phones found over 17,000 bacterial gene copies per phone. And in a hospital, over 11,000 organisms were found across 26 mobile phones. The organisms on the phones included streptococcus, staphylococcus, and herpes, in addition to bacteria with antibiotic-resistant genes.
Naturally, I wanted to know how germy my iPhone was. While I sanitize it maybe once a week, it’s still exposed to my sweaty pocket when I run and my hand when I’m commuting on the train. I throw it on the gym floor, place it on the counter when I’m cooking, and, of course, keep it on the table when I’m eating.
Think of all the food we eat with our hands. We snap a picture of our plate, take a bite of our sandwich, then scroll through our email or social media, potentially moving bacteria between from phone to hand to mouth.
I had to see just how dirty a phone could get. Using a test kit, I swabbed my phone and a few of my coworkers’, and the results weren’t all that shocking. All of our phones were absolutely covered in bacteria, some more than others. And while the test kit couldn’t tell us which bacteria it was, the results still would dampen an appetite.
Our experiment shows bacteria growth from swabbed cell phones.
It’s important to know that not all bacteria makes us sick. Susan Whittier, former director of clinical microbiology at New York-Presbyterian and Columbia University, told TIME that having microbes on your phone won’t automatically make you ill, but you still don’t want them in your body.
How To Sanitize Your Phone
While bacteria lives on everything, even our skin, the results of our phone swabs were enough to make anyone want to give their phone a good clean. So, how should you clean your phone?
You’ll want to check with the manufacturer, but for the most part, alcohol wipes or sanitizing wipes are safe to use on cell phones. Apple recommends disconnecting external power sources and keeping any liquids away from openings like power ports or speakers. Clorox disinfecting wipes, 75% ethyl alcohol wipes, or 70% isopropyl alcohol wipes can be used gently on Apple products.
Just Put It Away
Putting your shoes on furniture or leaving the bathroom without washing your hands are considered unsanitary behaviors. So why is keeping a dirty phone beside your plate of food normal?
I realize it can be difficult to put your phone away at the dinner table, especially if you’re at a restaurant that requires a phone to access the menu. And sure, if you carry your cell phone in your pocket, it’s natural to place it on the table to be able to sit down comfortably. Just try to not touch it so much while you’re eating. And if you really can’t give up scrolling at the table, just make sure to sanitize your phone on a regular basis. It’s probably very gross.
