How long bacteria and viruses live in your home

2024 Author: Malcolm Clapton | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 03:44

These "intruders" are everywhere, but don't panic.

Each square centimeter of skin harbors up to 100 thousand microorganisms. When we sneeze, droplets of liquid containing bacteria and viruses fly off by almost a meter.

“The lifespan of a microorganism depends on many factors,” says Philip Tierno, a microbiologist at New York University. - Viruses need to get into the cell of another organism to reproduce. Therefore, outside of it, they live less than bacteria. Although they still survive on various household surfaces. Bacteria can multiply outside the body, so they live longer."

The lifespan of microbes is influenced by humidity and temperature.

No bacteria or virus will survive on dry surfaces with less than 10% moisture. They multiply actively in the presence of any nutrients: food particles, skin cells, blood, mucus. Therefore, a dishwashing sponge is a fertile ground for the life of microorganisms.

Mesophilic bacteria, such as the tuberculosis-causing Koch's bacillus, thrive best at room temperature. Therefore, they live longer than cold-loving or thermophilic microorganisms. E. coli at room temperature and normal humidity lives from several hours to a day. This bacterium can be found in minced meat and causes food poisoning. The calicivirus, which causes intestinal flu, lives for days or even weeks. But HIV in the open air dies almost instantly.

In order to survive adverse conditions, some microorganisms form a dense shell.

This state of bacteria is called a spore. In the form of spores, bacteria withstand extreme temperatures and humidity.

For example, the bacterium Staphylococcus aureus, which causes infectious-toxic shock, food poisoning and wound infections, does this. Staphylococcus spores survive on dry clothes for several weeks, feeding on the remaining skin particles, Tierno said. And the anthrax bacillus - the causative agent of anthrax - lives in the form of spores for tens and even hundreds of years.

But don't panic. To protect yourself, wash your hands often. This greatly reduces the risk of contracting something. Use a disinfectant to regularly wipe down particularly hazardous surfaces: doorknobs, kitchen tables, sinks.