catching germs?

mutepointe · Post by **mutepointe** » Wed Jan 11, 2006 3:58 pm

i was recently at a christmas party with my boyfriend and his uncle matt had a pennywhistle. well, there was alcohol involved and there were some pretty dubious looking folks there. to be gracious, i politely sounded one note on the pennywhistle. can i catch a germ?

Wanderer · Post by **Wanderer** » Wed Jan 11, 2006 4:23 pm

I suppose you could in the same way drinking after somoene or kissing someone could pass germs.

It's never happened to me though..

Whitmores75087 · Post by **Whitmores75087** » Wed Jan 11, 2006 5:01 pm

I knew 2 girls in Canada who got mono or something and their mom said it was from sharing clarinets at school.

One never knows.

I can assure you the chances of getting AIDS this way are zero. If bird flu comes our way, that's another matter.

scheky · Post by **scheky** » Wed Jan 11, 2006 5:21 pm

Bad Troll...No cookie for you.

chas · Post by **chas** » Wed Jan 11, 2006 7:09 pm

Did you shake anybody's hand? It's a lot more likely that you'll catch something that way.

Wanderer · Post by **Wanderer** » Wed Jan 11, 2006 7:25 pm

I read somewhere that office computer keyboards and mice are more germ-laden than toilet seats..

Mitch · Post by **Mitch** » Wed Jan 11, 2006 8:11 pm

Wanderer wrote:I read somewhere that office computer keyboards and mice are more germ-laden than toilet seats..

SO ... we should use "Toilet Duck" on our keyboards and mice?

dubhlinn · Post by **dubhlinn** » Wed Jan 11, 2006 8:30 pm

I have heard, from a usually reliable source, that you can contract A.I.D.S. from a public lavatory.....it is however, an awful place to bring a date

Slan,
D.

doogieman · Post by **doogieman** » Thu Jan 12, 2006 9:29 am

I read somewhere that office computer keyboards and mice are more germ-laden than toilet seats..

.............and the handles of supermarket carts

Wombat · Post by **Wombat** » Thu Jan 12, 2006 9:37 am

A friend of mine, an orchestral clarinet player, claimed that she'd reinfected herself with 'flu from playing her clarinet. I've no idea if that's likely.

springrobin · Post by **springrobin** » Thu Jan 12, 2006 10:31 am

Well- I did have a doctor recommend throwing out toothbrushes after having a recurring respiratory infection.

Lambchop · Post by **Lambchop** » Thu Jan 12, 2006 6:26 pm

Wombat wrote:A friend of mine, an orchestral clarinet player, claimed that she'd reinfected herself with 'flu from playing her clarinet. I've no idea if that's likely.

After you've had the flu or a cold, you have immunity to that particular version of the bug. So, even if there are viable viruses on your instrument, you wouldn't get reinfected with them.

It's far more likely that a subsequent illness is caused by something else entirely, like another cold virus you got off a doorknob. There are hundreds of cold viruses.

The gross-out factor is what makes instrument mouthpieces such popular culprits. You don't get grossed out by letting someone play your fiddle or guitar, do you? No, of course not.

You don't get grossed out by shaking hands, handling doorknobs or other people's computer mice, or grasping grocery store basket handles, either. I can just about guarantee that most everyone reading this does NOT wash their hands after using the toilet, even in public places. Or, if they do, they turn off the faucet with their newly-dried hands and open the exit door by grasping the handle or pushing with their palm on the door. Even hearing about this, most of you won't get grossed out.

It's just not considered disgusting to do those things. Should be, though. It's a prime route for fecal-oral transmission of all sorts of things, and the transmission of cold and flu viruses.

Cynth · Post by **Cynth** » Thu Jan 12, 2006 9:09 pm

But Lamby if we were grossed out by everything we touch wouldn't we be sort of immobilized by fear? I have thought about the turning off the faucet thing, but sometimes don't you just have to use your freshly washed hands? Like if the place has hot air hand dryers you couldn't take a paper towel and use it to turn the faucet off. So if I let that freak me out, I'd just go nuts. I just try not to think about it. There is so much anxiety already. Oh and now that bird flu is coming.

Wombat · Post by **Wombat** » Thu Jan 12, 2006 10:25 pm

Lambchop wrote:
Wombat wrote:A friend of mine, an orchestral clarinet player, claimed that she'd reinfected herself with 'flu from playing her clarinet. I've no idea if that's likely.

After you've had the flu or a cold, you have immunity to that particular version of the bug. So, even if there are viable viruses on your instrument, you wouldn't get reinfected with them.

We both know that.

She was speculating that, since she had the 'flu, enough crud was entering the mouthpiece to keep the bugs happy for a while and to allow them to mutate. If this couldn't happen, why would a doctor recommend throwing out an old toothbrush when you have a persistent 'flu? No doctor's ever told me that but I've heard reports from time to time.

Lambchop · Post by **Lambchop** » Thu Jan 12, 2006 10:33 pm

Cynth wrote:But Lamby if we were grossed out by everything we touch wouldn't we be sort of immobilized by fear? I have thought about the turning off the faucet thing, but sometimes don't you just have to use your freshly washed hands? Like if the place has hot air hand dryers you couldn't take a paper towel and use it to turn the faucet off. So if I let that freak me out, I'd just go nuts. I just try not to think about it. There is so much anxiety already. Oh and now that bird flu is coming.

I'm certainly not immobilized by fear! Definitely not!

On the contrary, I whisk through my days secure in the knowledge that I have clean hands. Very clean. And I work in a hospital. I haven't actually touched anything in there for years--not even the elevator buttons.

You'll need a bit of advance planning to deal with difficult situations, but with practice this will become automatic.

If the place does not have hand towels, simply get a wad of toilet tissue before you wash your hands. Tuck it under your arm until needed. Then, use it to turn off the faucet. If the door opens inward, get another wad to use on the exit door.

Carry a neatly-folded paper towel in your purse, as well as some nice alcohol hand gel.

Bath and Bodyworks has really nice gel. It's on sale right now for $2.50 Their antibacterial hand lotion is wonderful, too. Also on sale.

Purell makes excellent alcohol gel towelettes in individual packets. Sam's Club carries big boxes of them. They're nice and big, and have a slightly rough surface for improved scrubbing action.