Tucked into the pocket on the back of my pickup’s passenger seat was a box of paper masks, a holdover from those turbulent times of COVID-19.
My son found the box, asked what they were for, and I tried to explain. He was born in February 2020, right before the world shut down.
The explanation I provided either answered his question or caused him to lose interest. Either way, he proceeded to yank all the masks out of the box, and now they decorate the interior of my vehicle.
Though we no longer have to wear masks out in public, all sorts of germs still float around us.
My wife is more concerned about this than I am. She has a real issue with certain public surfaces, such as door handles or even curtains covering the window in a hotel room.
After touching such things, she immediately feels the urge to wash her hands.
However, washing her hands might not be as helpful as she thinks, especially while out in public.
That’s because electric hot-air hand dryers found in places like airport or restaurant bathrooms do more harm than good.
According to an article by medical doctor John Ross for Harvard Health Publishing, these drying devices are “sucking up bacteria from the air, and dumping them on the newly washed hands of unsuspecting patrons.”
When toilets flush, they aerosolize fecal matter microbes. This means that a plume of poop particles is propelled into the air every time you push the flush handle or the robotic eye determines you have stood up from the porcelain throne.
Research published in the academic journal “Antimicrobial Resistance & Infection Control” indicated that this manure mist hangs in the air for up to 30 minutes after the bowl is evacuated.
That’s a long time for those electric warm-air hand dryers to feed on the fecal fog.
Of course, that’s not the only problem with those mechanical moisture removers.
They are also loud, and they can damage your hearing, especially if you are a child.
I recently came across a 2019 research article by Nora Louise Keegan — who is from Canada and was a 13-year-old eighth grader at the time — published in the “Paediatrics & Child Health” academic journal. According to her research, many electric warm-air hand dryers are louder than the manufacturers claim. Some even exceeded 120 decibels.
Based on information from Scientific American, that’s as loud as a live rock concert.
And different factors can change how the noise is experienced.
In reporting on the research for ABC10, Travis Pittman wrote, “Each test involved a different combination of heights and distances from the wall, and with or without hands in the air stream. The heights included the average height of a 3-year-old child’s ear canal and an adult man and woman’s ear canal. The tests were also done when there was no background noise such as toilets flushing or people talking.”
Keegan found that the hand dryers were louder when hands were in the air flow, and the volume increased the closer the audio sensor was to the air source, which means the decibels registered would be louder for children.
My daughter often complains about how loud bathroom hand dryers are. I thought she was being oversensitive. I was wrong.
Ambient noise pollution clearly carries real risks, just as air quality does.
So with summer vacations and warm weather excursions on the horizon, you certainly should still wash your hands while out and about, but wave your hands around or opt for paper towels to dry your mitts.
You’ll avoid poop-covered paws and protect your hearing. That’s a health win-win.
Todd R. Vogts, Ph.D., is a native of Canton, a resident of McPherson County, and a media researcher and educator. He can be contacted with questions or comments via his website at www.toddvogts.com.
