Surprising things that are dirtier than your toilet - You wouldn’t touch your toilet and then your face, would you? Hopefully, that answer is no, but it turns out there are tons of other surfaces that host several times more bacteria, and you definitely aren't washing your hands after you touch them. 

Check out this gallery to find out where the germs are hiding in plain sight. 

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Office coffee mugs - In an office, most people tend to clean their cups with bacteria-laden sponges or scrub brushes, which reportedly adds bacteria to the mug which can last up to three days.

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Tanning beds - Dermatologists have found that tanning beds can be a hotbed for the life-threatening staphylococcus bacteria, as well as fecal bacteria, the herpes virus, and papillomavirus—all in addition to cancer from the harmful rays.

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Playgrounds - Researchers reportedly sampled both indoor and outdoor playgrounds, finding traces of blood, mucus, saliva, and urine—all the makings of a parent's nightmare.

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Keyboards - People often eat at their desk while they work, and keyboards have been found with up to five times the amount of germs than a toilet seat!

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ATM machines and debit cards - If you think about it, your card is touching a lot of surfaces, being inserted into places where many other germ-covered cards are inserted, and no one ever thinks to clean their cards.

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Ice - This one is a bit frightening. One study showed that 70% of the ice served in fast food restaurants in the US had more bacteria than toilet water.

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Women's handbags - Almost every woman understands this innately: the bottom of your purse is a scary place. Plus, they hold money and cell phones, dirty hands are all over them, and they are placed on many different floors and surfaces throughout the day.

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Cutting boards -

Because raw meat carries a high level of fecal bacteria, cutting boards host up to 200 times more fecal bacteria than toilets. 

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Swimming pools - In 2013, CDC researchers collected water samples from filters at 160 public pools in the US, and found feces and E. coli in nearly 60% of them!

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Cell phones -

Studies have shown time and time again that most phones have fecal matter on them, which is great considering how much you put them up to your face! A 2011 survey also showed that 75% of Americans admitted to using their phones on the toilet.

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Reusable shopping bags - Reusable bags carry all the germs from everything they hold, and reportedly have more fecal matter than your underwear—that is, if you wash your underwear regularly.

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Movie theaters - Those theater seats have had many butts in them, many spilled drinks, and even bacteria commonly found in feces.

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Toothbrushes - Apparently when you flush your toilet, germs can travel up to six feet and linger for up to two hours. Toothbrushes are also left moist and therefore become comfortable hosts for bacteria, so take care of your oral hygiene by closing the lid before you flush.

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Shopping carts - The handles particularly are found to have traces of fecal matter and E. coli. 

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Restaurant menus -

Ah yes, the thing you touch before you eat. On average, there are 100 times more bacteria on restaurant menus than a restaurant toilet seat—and that's not because they have super clean toilet seats.

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Kitchen sponges - Your kitchen sponge stays moist with a mixture of food grime and warm water, which is the perfect condition to host a range of bacteria. Change them often!

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Carpet - Dead skin cells, food particles, pet dander, pollen, and all those accidents make carpet about 4,000 times dirtier than toilet seats.

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Airplane bathrooms - While you might think tray tables are bad, airplane bathroom sinks are the dirtiest surface. 

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Soda fountains - A 2010 report from the International Journal of Food Microbiology found that soda fountains had traces of contamination in the form of coliform bacteria.

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TV remotes - Touching it between snacks, letting it fall between the couch cushions, and passing it from hand to hand is a recipe for bacteria. 

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Bathtub - Even the place where you're supposed to leave feeling cleaner is a bacterial nightmare, particularly the area around the drain. 

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Refrigerators - Most refrigerators test positive for E. coli, which makes sense considering the fact that raw meat and other foods containing large amounts of bacteria are stored in them.

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Kitchen sink/faucet - It's where you wash all your dishes and produce to make them clean, but it's also probably dirtier than your whole bathroom combined.

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Door knobs -

Hands are one of the dirtiest parts of the body, so when you designate a place for many different hands to touch, you can expect a certain result. 

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Gas pumps - All kinds of hands with all kinds of bacteria are holding those handles day in and day out. What did you expect?

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Pillows - That safe, soft cloud you lay your head on at night is actually filled with dead skin cells, dust mites, fungal spores, pollen, and other body secretions which unfortunately make it dirtier than a toilet seat. 

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Your pet's food bowl - All this time you've been stopping your dog from licking the toilet seat, meanwhile the inside of their unclean dish is far more densely packed with bacteria.

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Don't freak out! - Clearly, humans are able to encounter all of this bacteria every day, many times a day, and still very few of us get sick or die from it.

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Do take preventative measures -

Keep washing your hands and disinfecting surfaces to ensure you don't make your immune system work too hard. Regular cleanings are important, but ultimately you will be fine. Apparently a little bit of poop never hurt anyone.

Sources: (Buzznick) 

See also: This is what happens if you don't wash yourself

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