# Dem germs, Dem germs Dem bad bad bad germs **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [September 18, 2023, 2:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dem-germs-dem-germs-dem-bad-bad-bad-germs/990290 "2023-09-18T02:01:48Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![wolfpup](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wolfpup/32/10618_2.png) [@wolfpup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolfpup)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2023, 4:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dem-germs-dem-germs-dem-bad-bad-bad-germs/990290/21 "2023-09-18T16:16:56Z")
I seem to remember reading something similar, suggesting that wood cutting boards have antibacterial properties. Although one advantage of plastic cutting boards is that they can be run through the dishwasher. ---
**Author:** ![Beckdawrek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beckdawrek/32/3647_2.png) [@Beckdawrek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beckdawrek)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2023, 4:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dem-germs-dem-germs-dem-bad-bad-bad-germs/990290/22 "2023-09-18T16:22:40Z")
@thorny_locust , it’s thinking about all those surfaces with germs lurking around that I fear.😊 ---
**Author:** ![rowrrbazzle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rowrrbazzle/32/414_2.png) [@rowrrbazzle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rowrrbazzle)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2023, 4:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dem-germs-dem-germs-dem-bad-bad-bad-germs/990290/23 "2023-09-21T04:25:36Z")
This, perhaps? > **[What’s better, a wooden cutting board or a plastic one?](https://www.straightdope.com/21343022/what-s-better-a-wooden-cutting-board-or-a-plastic-one)** > > A STAFF REPORT FROM THE STRAIGHT DOPE SCIENCE ADVISORY BOARD ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2023, 4:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dem-germs-dem-germs-dem-bad-bad-bad-germs/990290/24 "2023-09-21T16:56:06Z")
1. Soap kills most germs, at least at the extremely high concentrations they are exposed to when sitting right on the bar. 2. It’s easy to remove the surface of a bar of soap, by rinsing it in water. So pick up the soap. Use a glove if it really grosses you out. Rinse it until it looks clean. And then use it without fear. ---
**Author:** ![wolfpup](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wolfpup/32/10618_2.png) [@wolfpup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolfpup)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2023, 5:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dem-germs-dem-germs-dem-bad-bad-bad-germs/990290/25 "2023-09-21T17:12:31Z")
It wasn’t that, but I’ve always followed the advice in it. I have a big heavy wooden cutting board that I love and use for most kitchen cutting. But raw meats always get cut on the plastic board, which immediately gets put in the dishwasher. Also when roasts or stuff off the barbecue rests for a few minutes covered in foil – that’s always on the plastic board, tilted so any juices drain into the sink. Then straight into the dishwasher. ---
**Author:** ![Beckdawrek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beckdawrek/32/3647_2.png) [@Beckdawrek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beckdawrek)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2023, 5:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dem-germs-dem-germs-dem-bad-bad-bad-germs/990290/26 "2023-09-21T17:36:35Z")
All is well. I made Ivy pick it up. She rinsed it and said “Here’s you a nice clean bar of soap” I sez “Umm, no. You can have it” She walks happily to her bath room. (No wonder the girl has bubonic butt🤔) ---
**Author:** ![nelliebly](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/nelliebly/32/5422_2.png) [@nelliebly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nelliebly)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2023, 6:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dem-germs-dem-germs-dem-bad-bad-bad-germs/990290/27 "2023-09-22T06:35:52Z")
Just a note that you might want to rinse more than just the bar of soap. The goop on the ledge or in the soap holder stays wet and provides a nice, nurturing environment for microbes. It should be thoroughly cleaned and dried at least once a week. ---
**Author:** ![Beckdawrek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beckdawrek/32/3647_2.png) [@Beckdawrek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beckdawrek)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2023, 6:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dem-germs-dem-germs-dem-bad-bad-bad-germs/990290/28 "2023-09-22T06:40:13Z")
Nellie! Do you think I’m a filthy slob or something? Soap goop? I swan…never!!! Not me. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![nelliebly](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/nelliebly/32/5422_2.png) [@nelliebly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nelliebly)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2023, 7:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dem-germs-dem-germs-dem-bad-bad-bad-germs/990290/29 "2023-09-22T07:19:09Z")
And here I was worried you might think I was referring to products by that actress who hawks candles that smell like her hoo-ha. ---
**Author:** ![VOW](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/vow/32/3043_2.png) [@VOW](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/VOW)\ **Post date:** [September 23, 2023, 11:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dem-germs-dem-germs-dem-bad-bad-bad-germs/990290/30 "2023-09-23T23:38:09Z")
I’m envisioning a bar where all the germs line up and order their favorite beverage. I bet it’s warm beer, mostly foam. 🍻 ~VOW ---
**Author:** ![Yllaria](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yllaria/32/3452_2.png) [@Yllaria](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Yllaria)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2023, 3:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dem-germs-dem-germs-dem-bad-bad-bad-germs/990290/31 "2023-09-24T03:53:13Z")
If you want to designate a special bar for stinky boys, you could try getting a bar of Lava. It has pumice in it. What boy can resist soap with rocks in it? ---
**Author:** ![Beckdawrek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beckdawrek/32/3647_2.png) [@Beckdawrek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beckdawrek)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2023, 4:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dem-germs-dem-germs-dem-bad-bad-bad-germs/990290/32 "2023-09-24T04:06:32Z")
We do hands and feet with Lava. I recall it makes them itchy in the bathtub. Sensitive skin gets filthy too. So mid-Daughter just times the scrub on them. They have to soap up certain places for a certain amount of time she decided was best. They won’t let her scrub them with her own hands anymore. Which I think is probably proper. So far they ain’t too stinky to send to school or offend too many folks. ---
**Author:** ![Gatopescado](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gatopescado/32/5711_2.png) [@Gatopescado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatopescado)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2023, 4:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dem-germs-dem-germs-dem-bad-bad-bad-germs/990290/33 "2023-09-24T04:45:40Z")
Ya know, you got cats. And let them have access to your bed, where you sleep. Cats piss and shit in a sand box, then scratch around in there. They don’t wash those filthy paws. Or wipe their ass. And then they crawl all over where you sleep. Think about that for a while… ---
**Author:** ![Yllaria](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yllaria/32/3452_2.png) [@Yllaria](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Yllaria)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2023, 4:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dem-germs-dem-germs-dem-bad-bad-bad-germs/990290/34 "2023-09-24T04:52:49Z")
Are you saying that cat saliva isn’t antiseptic? ---
**Author:** ![wolfpup](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wolfpup/32/10618_2.png) [@wolfpup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolfpup)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2023, 5:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dem-germs-dem-germs-dem-bad-bad-bad-germs/990290/35 "2023-09-24T05:14:27Z")
> [@Yllaria](#): > > Are you saying that cat saliva isn’t antiseptic?   Not completely sanitary, no. In fact, cat saliva is what birthed the creature in _Alien_. On the subject of small stinky boys, I believe the correct solution is to take them outside, gently spray them with Tide Ultra Oxi and a little bleach, and then after a few minutes turn a fire hose on them. The opinions of some coddling parents may vary, but I can pretty much guarantee that they’ll no longer be stinky. I base this successful model on how I treated Bernie the Bernese Mountain Dog after he got skunked, but in Bernie’s case I used a skunk odor remover and dog shampoo instead of Tide, and a warm shower instead of a fire hose. Situations vary. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Beckdawrek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beckdawrek/32/3647_2.png) [@Beckdawrek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beckdawrek)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2023, 5:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dem-germs-dem-germs-dem-bad-bad-bad-germs/990290/36 "2023-09-24T05:16:04Z")
P’shaw, Mr. Fish. The Siamese think I’m too dirty to sleep with. I’ll have you know Bear uses the guest toilet. Cat litter bothers his widdle paw paws. ---
**Author:** ![Beckdawrek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beckdawrek/32/3647_2.png) [@Beckdawrek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beckdawrek)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2023, 5:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dem-germs-dem-germs-dem-bad-bad-bad-germs/990290/37 "2023-09-24T05:18:51Z")
I’ve tried that. They liked it too much. (I used kid wash and Suave(msp) shampoo, and regular water pressure) ---
**Author:** ![wolfpup](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wolfpup/32/10618_2.png) [@wolfpup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolfpup)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2023, 5:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dem-germs-dem-germs-dem-bad-bad-bad-germs/990290/38 "2023-09-24T05:20:25Z")
Have you tried putting them directly in the washing machine? (Important: use the “gentle fabrics” cycle.) ---
**Author:** ![Beckdawrek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beckdawrek/32/3647_2.png) [@Beckdawrek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beckdawrek)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2023, 5:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dem-germs-dem-germs-dem-bad-bad-bad-germs/990290/39 "2023-09-24T05:23:09Z")
That was their suggestion. It took considerable convincing to assure them it would most definitely not be _fun._ ---
**Author:** ![Gatopescado](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gatopescado/32/5711_2.png) [@Gatopescado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatopescado)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2023, 5:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dem-germs-dem-germs-dem-bad-bad-bad-germs/990290/40 "2023-09-24T05:33:56Z")
> [@Beckdawrek](#): > > I’ll have you know Bear uses the guest toilet Where the germy filthy half bar of used soap resides? Um hum. Plus, his paws are on the seat where Human Ass goes to sweat and flex. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dem-germs-dem-germs-dem-bad-bad-bad-germs/990290.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dem-germs-dem-germs-dem-bad-bad-bad-germs/990290.md?page=3)