Paper toilet seat covers

[damo]

Do you use toilet seat covers in public restrooms?

 

[chell]

Yes, if they are available.

 

[Pop Daddy]

nope, there nothing like others people urine on your buttocks

 

[Thomas the tank]

We don't have them here

 

[Nutsy]

I voted yes, because I do when I go somwhere that has them.

Then there is No because we don't have them here in Australia that I'm aware of

The first place I came across these was at Auckland International Airport & then again in DL & the airports over there.

They are a very good idea, very hygenic

What I do here is, I pull heaps of toilet paper off the roll & lay it over the seat

 

[browneyes]

I try to most of the time, but most of the time the bathrooms I go in are out of them, or I'm in a hurry.

 

[ibouncetoo]

........this question reminds me of my newest pet peeve....people who leave the one they used on the toilet seat!!!!!!!!!!

 

[FreshTressa]

I just squat

 

[tar heel]

I'm always amazed when I go into a restroom that has them and find the seat wet. Now, why couldn't that person before just use the doggone cover? And if they have to wet the seat, couldn't they take a few seconds and wipe it off? I can't imagine why anyone wouldn't use them. I wish all public restrooms had them, instead of just Disney, Kohl's and Target!

 

[julie_yet]

Originally posted by FreshTressa
I just squat

That's how I build my leg muscles up on road trips.

 

[GailT]

My butt has never sat on apublic toliet other then if I am at a hotel and I bring lysol wipes and clean it before I use it, other then that I squat. Usually I am a camel when I go away, I can go from morning till night and not have to pee

 

[disneyjunkie]

Originally posted by GailT
My butt has never sat on apublic toliet other then if I am at a hotel and I bring lysol wipes and clean it before I use it, other then that I squat. Usually I am a camel when I go away, I can go from morning till night and not have to pee

ITA

 

[damo]

I think they are quite ineffective. Check this out.

FAMILY MEDICINE® COLUMN
By John C. Wolf, D.O.
Associate Professor of Family Medicine®
Ohio University College of Osteopathic Medicine

HEALTH RISKS FROM PUBLIC TOILETS PROBABLY EXAGGERATED

Question: Last week, I learned from a couple of R.N.s that toilet seat covers have no health benefits at all. They said that there is no scientific evidence that a paper product will provide any protection from disease/germs. They really only absorb the urine. What is your opinion on this?

Answer: All of us must use public restrooms occasionally. Some of these facilities are carefully maintained while others are far from spotless. The clean ones make me less uncomfortable while some of the dirtier ones make me uncomfortable just standing there. Actually sitting on the toilet is an "extreme emergency only" option. The health risks from use of a public restroom are principally from the bacteria, lice, or viruses left by previous users. It is well known that these organisms can survive on hard surfaces for an extended period of time. As example, the common cold virus may lurk on doorknobs, faucet handles and similar objects for as long as a month. Bacteria are less hardy. Depending on the particular type, they typically only survive for hours or days. Obviously, being the "next in line" at the restroom can offer some unappealing opportunities.

Despite what might appear to be the gloomy prospect of infection from use of a public restroom, catching an infection this way is actually a rare event. This is especially true for those who are in good health. There are a few documented cases of hospitalized individuals contracting infectious diarrhea because the previous person in that room had the disease. These infections could have been transmitted by ways other than an improperly cleaned toilet, so these few cases remain as lessons for the infection control teams of hospitals, not worries for you and me.

Bacteriologic studies can recover disease-causing microbes from toilet bowels and seats. Despite this, there is no scientific literature that shows these are transmitted to subsequent users in sufficient numbers to actually cause illness. Therefore, your nurse friends are correct. Paper toilet seat covers really do nothing beneficial. Carefully washing your hands after using the bathroom is far more important.

Here are a few practical tips for you to consider. As a general principle, if the toilet appears clean, it is clean enough to use. However, I strongly recommend that you avoid direct contact with someone else's blood, stool or urine. If you are faced with the dilemma of having a soiled toilet as your only option in a "potty emergency," there are several steps you should take. First, while being careful to avoid getting any of the obvious contamination on you, wipe it from the toilet seat with tissue and flush it away. Then, use a paper toilet seat cover, or, even better, quickly clean the seat. This can be accomplished in one of three ways: soap and water, Lysol, or - most effectively - diluted household bleach. Then, wash your hands when you are done.

Family Medicine® is a weekly column. To submit questions, write to John C. Wolf, D.O., Ohio University College of Osteopathic Medicine, Grosvenor Hall, Athens, Ohio 45701

This seems to be the view in the medical community.

 

[msdznyduck]

My butt has never sat on apublic toliet other then if I am at a hotel and I bring lysol wipes and clean it before I use it, other then that I squat. Usually I am a camel when I go away, I can go from morning till night and not have to pee

I wish.........I think I know every bathroom in New Jersey, and quite a few more.

Don't use them, cause they are rarely there, and if the covers are there, its usually too much of an emergency to play with them.

 

[Jeanny]

I still use the covers and I ALWAYS WASH MY HANDS! and then I use a clean paper towel/toilet paper on the door handles both in the stall and leaving the ladies room....You'd be surprised at the # of people who do NOT wash their hands...eeeewwww.

One of my professors did a "swab test" with his Personal & Community Health class last year. They "swabbed" my keyboard, phone, the public phone, the ladies room seats, the men's locker room (EW, Hold your nose!!), the fitness center weight benches...

Don't use a public pay phone unless you really have to!! My keyboard and phone came out fine because I always clean them with alcohol swabs.... the men's locker room on the other hand..well, lets just say our football players are gross!!!

 

[chell]

Originally posted by Jeanny
I still use the covers and I ALWAYS WASH MY HANDS! and then I use a clean paper towel/toilet paper on the door handles both in the stall and leaving the ladies room....You'd be surprised at the # of people who do NOT wash their hands...eeeewwww.

I know a few people who will not wash their hands if there are no paper towels available to dry their hands with and use to turn off the faucet. They say you get just as many germs by touching the faucet.