Your computer keyboard is probably dirtier than a toilet seat — here's how often to clean it, according to doctors and microbiologists

pulse

April 19, 2018 8:47 PM

The computer keyboard that you type on every day is probably dirtier than a toilet seat. Here's how often you should clean it, and what happens if you don't.

Computer keyboards can be some of the dirtiest surfaces we touch every day.
Hospital workers
For a home or office keyboard, a wipe down every few days or at least once a week is best.

400 times the amount of bacteria

Not so with the computer, especially those shared by multiple people. One Chicago hospital found that its computer keyboards held drug-resistant strains of

Considering how frequently we use computers, it's understandable that dirt constantly gets lodged in between the keys. We've all rushed to type something quickly after being out and about, eaten meals at our computers, and typed while simultaneously dealing with sticky substances.

Those of us who use computers at work talk, sneeze, and cough on the keys all day long, too.

While you're at it, consider giving your phone a cleansing swipe, too. Smartphones can easily pick upE. coliandStreptococcusbugs because we handle them so frequently and take them everywhere with us.

Philip Tierno, a microbiologist and pathologist at the New York University School of Medicine suggests giving your phone a good wipe down at the end of each day.

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