Whose Offices Are Germier? Men vs. Women
If you're reading this at work, brace yourself. A new study shows that typical offices have hundreds of types of bacteria in them, and men's offices have the most. Researchers report finding more than 500 different types of bacteria on common surfaces in offices in three major U.S. cities. And, perhaps less surprisingly to some people, they found that men's offices are more contaminated than women's. "Humans are spending an increasing amount of time indoors, yet we know little about the diversity of bacteria and viruses where we live, work, and play," says lead researcher Scott Kelley, PhD. The San Diego State University biologist and his team swabbed five common office surfaces -- chairs, phones, desks, computer mice, and keyboards -- in 90 different offices, 30 each in San Francisco, New York, and Tucson. The research team, which was partially funded by the Clorox Corporation, found bacteria on nearly every surface they tested. Most of it came from t...