Kids may have mixed emotions about going back to school, but bacteria can't wait for that first bell to ring. It's not just numbers that multiply once class is in session—germs have a major presence in home room and other part of your child's school. Study up on these particularly germ-heavy locations and avoid them like the principal's office.
If they're not in the cafeteria eating lunch or running around the gymnasium, students—at least, well behaved ones—are spending a lot of time at their desk. It's no wonder why these surfaces are often listed as things that must be disinfected to help stop the spread of influenza and other illnesses.
Being touched by lots of hands and not many cleaning supplies is a bad recipe that creates lots of bacteria. According to the NSF, researchers who looked into the germiest places in two Michigan schools found that computer keyboards were actually dirtier than the toilet seats.
If they're not often emptied enough, tissue-filled waste baskets can spread influenza and other illnesses.
Everyone has to touch a doorknob, even the students who don't wash their hands. Studies have shown that a contaminated doorknob can infect half of an environment like an office or health facility in mere hours.
Anything handled by many students is going to be at risk to spread influenza and streptococcus, but books can also be home to bugs and their eggs.
While hard toys such as blocks can have bacteria on their surface, plush toys like stuffed animals are even more of a menace—as they're tough to clean and can absorb liquid that may contain germs.
Hands-on items, especially those that are shared by many students, can always be counted on for potentially harmful bacteria. Considering that art supplies are not only shared by multiple students, but entire classes, they're very much a candidate to spread influenza and other illnesses.
Balls, mats, pinnies — you name it. Almost everything that's involved in phys. ed class is not only shared, but sweated on. A lot. Consider that even more motivation not to get hit during dodgeball — you'll want to avoid those bacteria-covered balls at all cost.
Sure, the monkey bars seem like fun, but they can also be covered in streptococcus and E. coli. Wee!
E-coli, legionella, and coliform can all be found in water fountains. According to a study, a dog's bowl may even be safer to drink out of than a public water fountain — best to send your little one to class with their own reusable water bottle to sip from.
While not quite as germ-y as water fountains, cafeteria trays pack a bacterial punch of their own that is not to be sneezed at. Data collected by NSF researchers has the trays that students eat off listed as having more bacteria on them than toilet seats.
While they're surprisingly less bacteria-ridden than many items on this list, bathrooms, especially sink handles and toilet seats, are certainly not germ-free zones.
Class pets are adorable creatures that provide students with a chance to learn how to care for another living being without taking on all of the responsibility involved in having a pet of their own. That said, when pets have many care-takers with suspicious levels of personal hygiene holding them all of the time, that's sure to spread some germs.
Another shared, hand-operated instrument, the pencil sharpener, can be a breeding ground for all sorts of germs. Personal pencil sharpeners and mechanical pencils are more sanitary alternatives.