# Poll for people who wash their hands after using the bathroom. (Please read before voting.) **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [April 1, 2011, 1:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-for-people-who-wash-their-hands-after-using-the-bathroom-please-read-before-voting/576770 "2011-04-01T13:15:26Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2011, 6:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-for-people-who-wash-their-hands-after-using-the-bathroom-please-read-before-voting/576770/61 "2011-04-04T18:18:39Z")
> [@KinkiNipponTourist](#): > > What is this bit about the penis being the cleanest part of your body? What? Mr. P is nestled snugly against your warm, gently sweating plums. All of this is tucked into your underwear, and then if we’re lucky you have another pair of pants on. There is some SWEATING going on there, just like we ladies get. And, apocrine sweat (which is only produced in your groin, your underarms, and around your nipples) is something which bacteria love to munch upon. ---
**Author:** ![sitchensis](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sitchensis/32/4892_2.png) [@sitchensis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sitchensis)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2011, 7:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-for-people-who-wash-their-hands-after-using-the-bathroom-please-read-before-voting/576770/62 "2011-04-04T19:03:03Z")
and all your fancy talk goes right out the window once its time to have sex ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2011, 7:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-for-people-who-wash-their-hands-after-using-the-bathroom-please-read-before-voting/576770/63 "2011-04-04T19:45:11Z")
> [@sitchensis](#): > > and all your fancy talk goes right out the window once its time to have sex There is a certain irony there. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Agent\_Foxtrot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9fc29f/32.png) [@Agent\_Foxtrot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Agent_Foxtrot)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2011, 7:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-for-people-who-wash-their-hands-after-using-the-bathroom-please-read-before-voting/576770/64 "2011-04-04T19:50:02Z")
> [@sitchensis](#): > > and all your fancy talk goes right out the window once its time to have sex I agree. I am sure most people don’t mind putting their mouths on other people’s filthy, coliform-ridden genitals when the time is right. How does one rationalize the inconsistency there? ---
**Author:** ![GargoyleWB](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gargoylewb/32/199_2.png) [@GargoyleWB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GargoyleWB)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2011, 7:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-for-people-who-wash-their-hands-after-using-the-bathroom-please-read-before-voting/576770/65 "2011-04-04T19:56:03Z")
I’ll own up to being one of the unwashed heathen: “I am a man and if I wash my hands, it’s because socially, I’m ‘supposed to.’” I think most of y’all are paranoid numbertwophobes. Poo and pee cooties are not going to hurt you unless you are already wallowing in unhygenic mispractice, such as never bathing or wiping, in which case washing your hands won’t do much anyway and you have larger problems. If you are in a health care area or food prep area, definitely, but otherwise I’ve spent far too much time camping, exotic traveling, and public transit surviving to be afraid anymore. ---
**Author:** ![Acid\_Lamp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/d6d6ee/32.png) [@Acid\_Lamp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acid_Lamp)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2011, 12:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-for-people-who-wash-their-hands-after-using-the-bathroom-please-read-before-voting/576770/66 "2011-04-05T12:07:43Z")
> [@Agent\_Foxtrot](#): > > I agree. I am sure most people don’t mind putting their mouths on other people’s filthy, coliform-ridden genitals when the time is right. How does one rationalize the inconsistency there? Obviously, THOSE people are also “clean” of course. :rolleyes: ---
**Author:** ![Anaamika](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/5f9b8f/32.png) [@Anaamika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anaamika)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2011, 1:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-for-people-who-wash-their-hands-after-using-the-bathroom-please-read-before-voting/576770/67 "2011-04-05T13:35:44Z")
> [@Agent\_Foxtrot](#): > > I agree. I am sure most people don’t mind putting their mouths on other people’s filthy, coliform-ridden genitals when the time is right. How does one rationalize the inconsistency there? 😕 Because we choose whose filthy, coliform-ridden genitals to touch? ---
**Author:** ![Agent\_Foxtrot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9fc29f/32.png) [@Agent\_Foxtrot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Agent_Foxtrot)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2011, 1:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-for-people-who-wash-their-hands-after-using-the-bathroom-please-read-before-voting/576770/68 "2011-04-05T13:56:43Z")
> [@Anaamika](#): > > 😕 Because we choose whose filthy, coliform-ridden genitals to touch? I’m just asking why there’s no icky unhygienic factor there. ---
**Author:** ![salinqmind](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/3ec8ea/32.png) [@salinqmind](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/salinqmind)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2011, 4:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-for-people-who-wash-their-hands-after-using-the-bathroom-please-read-before-voting/576770/69 "2011-04-05T16:52:25Z")
I’m not a germaphobe, but I would no sooner leave the ladies room without washing my hands than I would exit with my pants down around my knees! :eek: And the exit door better be on hinges that swing open, I don’t want to touch the doorknob. (If I didn’t wash my hands, I’d “feel” germs all over them. Similar to washing an apple under the kitchen faucet, I “picture” all the germs just washing away under the stream of water. I have a bit of OCD, I can’t help it.) ---
**Author:** ![Scubaqueen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c0e974/32.png) [@Scubaqueen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scubaqueen)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2011, 5:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-for-people-who-wash-their-hands-after-using-the-bathroom-please-read-before-voting/576770/70 "2011-04-05T17:56:44Z")
ew, ew, and ew, people. :eek: :eek: this truculent ‘i don’t gotta wash my hands if i don’t wanna,’ ‘tude i just don’t get. bad enough with adults who should know better. criminal if there are children about, because they’re going to pick up the same bad habit. wash your hands w/hot water and soap every time you use a public restroom - and also at home, i hasten to add. would you fix lunch or cook dinner without washing your hands before you begin? there is absolutely no difference between that and washing \*after \*using a restroom. i used to work in a wastewater treatment plant. what i know about spread of infection related to coliform bacteria (and other equally-lovely infectious materials) is scary. just take my word for it - or exercise your google-fu and find out for yourself. i was just the departmental paperpusher, never out on the plant grounds. even so, i was required to undergo the hepatitis b shot series. why? because i dealt with the paperwork that came in off those grounds - handled by guys who on occasion were all but up to their necks in… things that would curl your hair. call me over-reactive. i don’t mind. 😃 you can’t unlearn the things i learned, but because of washing my hands, i am rarely sick when all the rest of you (office drones) are coming down with colds and flu or worse. the cecil column is right: e. coli and a bunch of other like-minded bacteria will kill you under the right conditions. they sure as hell will make you very sick. there’s a reason nature constructed us the way it did, and the number one way to limit the spread of infection of any kind from person to person is just by simply washing your hands. ---
**Author:** ![Jackmannii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackmannii/32/311_2.png) [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2011, 6:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-for-people-who-wash-their-hands-after-using-the-bathroom-please-read-before-voting/576770/71 "2011-04-05T18:18:56Z")
A little while ago I was washing my hands in a hospital mens’ room when another guy wearing scrubs completed his task at the urinal and headed straight for the exit. I would hope that this person was not heading off to do a physical exam on someone but cannot be sure. > [@Anaamika](#): > > 😕 Because we choose whose filthy, coliform-ridden genitals to touch? And another romantic moment is shot to hell. ☹ ---
**Author:** ![Anaamika](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/5f9b8f/32.png) [@Anaamika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anaamika)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2011, 6:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-for-people-who-wash-their-hands-after-using-the-bathroom-please-read-before-voting/576770/72 "2011-04-05T18:25:28Z")
> [@Agent\_Foxtrot](#): > > I’m just asking why there’s no icky unhygienic factor there. I don’t really understand why there should be. I choose to sleep with my SO, I know there are icky germy things there. I didn’t choose to sleep with you so if you’ve just rubbed your hands all over your cock and shaken hands with me, _eew_. And yes I know that the average pee session does not include the above, but you get my drift. But I am not really that concerned, and the reason why I am not that concerned, is that I wash my hands. So whatever icky things I am getting from others I am hopefully washing off several times a day. And I am not a germaphobe. It’s like cleanliness automatically = germaphobe. Like I said, I touch the door, and I don’t hover, and I’m ok with living in the real world…but I am going to take the precautions that are easy, and \* I am right there\*. It’s not out of my way or troublesome at all. I’m not going specially to the bathroom to wash my hands. I’m in the bathroom already and washing my hands with soap and hot water. It’s convenient and prudent, and really nothing is stopping me, so why not? ---
**Author:** ![Procrustus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/procrustus/32/2994_2.png) [@Procrustus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Procrustus)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2011, 6:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-for-people-who-wash-their-hands-after-using-the-bathroom-please-read-before-voting/576770/73 "2011-04-05T18:53:44Z")
> [@Scubaqueen](#): > > ew, ew, and ew, people. :eek: :eek: > would you fix lunch or cook dinner without washing your hands before you begin? there is absolutely no difference between that and washing \*after \*using a restroom. Hmm, never thought of that. Don’t think I’ve ever washed my hands before preparing a meal. Perhaps I should start a new tradition. ---
**Author:** ![RTFirefly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c77e96/32.png) [@RTFirefly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RTFirefly)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2011, 8:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-for-people-who-wash-their-hands-after-using-the-bathroom-please-read-before-voting/576770/74 "2011-04-05T20:47:29Z")
I don’t wash if I get up in the middle of the night to take a piss. Or if I’m on a hike or bike ride, away from plumbing facilities. Otherwise, I wash, at home or at work. That’s not always, but it’s a lot more than ‘sometimes.’ ---
**Author:** ![OpalCat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/8edcca/32.png) [@OpalCat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OpalCat)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2011, 10:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-for-people-who-wash-their-hands-after-using-the-bathroom-please-read-before-voting/576770/75 "2011-04-05T22:55:05Z")
> [@Lady\_of\_the\_Lake](#): > > This is something I’ve never understood as it’s not about the pee. > > You’re _touching your penis_ and then shaking hands and stuff. I mean, if you then shake hands with another guy who doesn’t bother washing his hands…oughtn’t you just bypass the middle man and fondle each others penises as a ‘hello’? Exactly! I think of it this way: if you’d just done what you just did to a stranger, would you wash your hands? So, if you’re a guy: if you’d just held onto some random guy’s dick for 20 seconds or whatever, would you want to wash your hands? If so, then wash your hands. > [@DrDeth](#): > > Urine is sterile and your penis is likely the cleanest part of your body. Cleaner than your hands. There’s no reason to wash your hands after urinating if you’re a male. How many times you you have to be told it’s about the bacteria, not the urine, before it gets through? > [@Agent\_Foxtrot](#): > > I agree. I am sure most people don’t mind putting their mouths on other people’s filthy, coliform-ridden genitals when the time is right. How does one rationalize the inconsistency there? The idea of sexual contact with most people grosses me out. Even fairly attractive people. There are very few people whose genitalia I’d willingly touch. ANd you know what I do after sex? Pretty much every single time? _I take a shower._ > [@Procrustus](#): > > Hmm, never thought of that. Don’t think I’ve ever washed my hands before preparing a meal. Perhaps I should start a new tradition. :eek: Gross! Remind me never to eat anything YOU’VE prepared! ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2011, 4:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-for-people-who-wash-their-hands-after-using-the-bathroom-please-read-before-voting/576770/76 "2011-04-06T04:22:55Z")
> [@Lady\_of\_the\_Lake](#): > > You’re _touching your penis_ and then shaking hands and stuff. I mean, if you then shake hands with another guy who doesn’t bother washing his hands…oughtn’t you just bypass the middle man and fondle each others penises as a ‘hello’? My penis is cleaner than their hands. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2011, 4:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-for-people-who-wash-their-hands-after-using-the-bathroom-please-read-before-voting/576770/77 "2011-04-06T04:26:17Z")
> [@OpalCat](#): > > Exactly! I think of it this way: if you’d just done what you just did to a stranger, would you wash your hands? So, if you’re a guy: if you’d just held onto some random guy’s dick for 20 seconds or whatever, would you want to wash your hands? If so, then wash your hands. > > How many times you you have to be told it’s about the bacteria, not the urine, before it gets through? There are far less bacteria on the average penis that on the average hand. Hands are dirty out all day, touching things. Pensis are carefully washed then hidden away in 2 layers of cloth. Like I said, I agree when you go to the bathroom, you wash your hands. But it’s not because you just touched your penis or other private parts. It’s because you should wash your filthy hands several times a day. Even if I just walk past the bathroom sometimes I duck in to wash my hands. ---
**Author:** ![OpalCat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/8edcca/32.png) [@OpalCat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OpalCat)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2011, 4:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-for-people-who-wash-their-hands-after-using-the-bathroom-please-read-before-voting/576770/78 "2011-04-06T04:46:20Z")
It’s not just the amount it is the type of bacteria that live there. ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2011, 1:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-for-people-who-wash-their-hands-after-using-the-bathroom-please-read-before-voting/576770/79 "2011-04-06T13:32:09Z")
> [@DrDeth](#): > > Pensis are carefully washed then hidden away in 2 layers of cloth. And, if they _stayed_ carefully washed, and not exposed to anything else, that’d be fine. But, instead, they then sit for the next 24 hours, in a humid, bacteria-friendly environment. (Eh, why do I bother? Clearly, you don’t believe this, or don’t care.) ---
**Author:** ![Anaamika](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/5f9b8f/32.png) [@Anaamika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anaamika)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2011, 1:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-for-people-who-wash-their-hands-after-using-the-bathroom-please-read-before-voting/576770/80 "2011-04-06T13:41:08Z")
> [@OpalCat](#): > > It’s not just the amount it is the type of bacteria that live there. It’s not even just that! It’s because you’re in the bathroom anyway so you may as well wash your hands because no doubt they have picked up a bunch of bacteria/viruses from a bunch of places. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-for-people-who-wash-their-hands-after-using-the-bathroom-please-read-before-voting/576770.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-for-people-who-wash-their-hands-after-using-the-bathroom-please-read-before-voting/576770.md?page=5)