Antibacterials Not the Best Germ Fighters

(HealthScoutNews) -- Your wallet may be the main thing getting cleaned by household antibacterial cleaning products.

A Tufts University School of Medicine microbiological survey of homes found little difference in levels of bacteria or antibiotic resistance between homes that used antibacterial cleaning products and those that didn't.

The findings were presented May 21 at the general meeting of the American Society for Microbiology in Washington, D.C.

The Tufts researchers checked for aerobic bacteria in the bathrooms and kitchens of 38 homes in the Boston and Cincinnati areas. They also evaluated the frequency of bacterial resistance to six different antibiotics.

They found large variations among identical sites in different homes and determined that significant amounts of bacteria could be recovered, even from sites in homes where antibacterial products were used for cleaning.

The highest numbers of bacteria were found on kitchen sponges and in sink and bathtub drains.

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