The cutting-edge of clean Understanding residual sanitation and disinfection

摘要

Germs are spread in a multitude of ways - from person-to-person, from food-to-person or from surfaces-to-person.～(1,2) When people visit public areas outside the home, such as foodservice facilities, they can come in contact with many surfaces, including tabletops, menus and highchairs. All of these surfaces are sources of moderate to high microbial contamination.～(3,4) Germs can persist in these areas for hours or even days. One study found that bacteria transferred to laminated menus persisted for six or more hours, posing a serious risk of cross-contamination.～4 Another route for germ transmission is when people touch contaminated surfaces and fomites (pens, desks and other objects) and then touch their faces. Adults touch their face approximately 15 times an hour and about 360 times in a 24-hour period.5 Research has shown that people can touch surfaces an average of 301 times in hour and up to 3,600 times in 12 hours.～3 You can imagine how that web can build. For harmful bacteria to spread, all it takes is for someone to touch a contaminated surface and then touch a door handle, elevator button, keypad, countertop, desk or other high-touch surface.