Hot-Air Hand Dryers: Safe or Dangerous?
Do hot-air hand dryers spread germs? Watch the video for the explanation.
Usually in public restrooms in malls or theatres or hotels there are hot-air hand dryers installed. After using the restroom many of us use the hot hand dryer to dry our hands. But think twice before using a hot-air dryer. Because you could be covering your freshly cleaned hands — with more bacteria. In 2018 a research study was done to see if hand dryers are spreading bacteria on people’s hands. To investigate this, researchers kept petri dishes in the air in bathrooms in various conditions like some were kept near the toilets, some near the basin, some near the vent/window. Also some were kept under the hand dryer with the dryer OFF and some were kept under the hand dryer with it turned ON. They brought the dishes back to their lab to see if bacteria was growing on them. They found that petri dishes that were exposed to bathroom air for two minutes with the hand dryers off only grew one colony of bacteria or no bacteria at all. But the petri dishes exposed to hot air from a hand dryer for 30 seconds grew 18 to 254 colonies of bacteria. However the researchers were not clear if the bacteria which was being spread from the hand dryer were increasing inside the hand dryer or if the dryer was absorbing and sucking bacteria from the bathroom air.
So, scientists attached High-Efficiency Particulate Air (HEPA) filters to the hot-air dryers so that less amount of bacteria from the bathroom air is able to enter the dryers. After putting the filters, they found that the bacteria in the petri dishes decreased by 75%. This proved that most of the bacteria was coming from the bathroom air. Where was bacteria coming in the bathroom air from? It turns out that, “every time a lidless toilet is flushed, there is a cloud of bacteria which can spread out as far as 65 square feet. Despite that slightly alarming discovery, you can still wash and dry safely. Here’s how. Here’s how to safely dry your hands. Health experts say you should still dry your hands after washing them, but consider these options when you do.
Here's how to safely dry your hands:
1. Use paper towels to dry your hands instead.
2. Carry your own handkerchief everywhere.
3. Use sanitizer.
These will help you to stay safe and healthy.
