No one likes to think about unwanted varmints, bugs, or microbes, or really any uninvited pest hanging out in our home, but the truth is, we’re probably co-existing with far more of them that we’d like to acknowledge.
In this case, we’re talking about mold.
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New research from the University of Reading has found that our sinks and P-traps are rife with fungus.
They catalogued the contents of more than 250 bathroom sinks and found all kinds of fungus, including black mold, which can cause a host of serious health conditions.
There are documented cases around the world of people dying after severe exposure, and as usual, at-risk communities are more likely to find themselves living in conditions that promote its growth.
Project lead Dr. Soon Gweon said in a statement that their findings should raise serious health concerns.
“We spend 90 percent of our time indoors so we are exposed to fungi in our homes and workplaces. For most people, this isn’t a problem, but for those who are immunocompromised, certain fungal species can cause serious infections.”
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And, he says, people don’t often think about their sinks as problem spots for fungus.
“It isn’t a big surprise to find fungi in a warm, wet environment. But sinks and P-traps have thus far been overlooked as potential reservoirs of these microorganisms. This could be a really important finding for those who are trying to help immunocompromised people avoid infections by some of the opportunistic pathogens that may be lurking in sinks, such as Fusarium.”
If that doesn’t freak you out, listen to this – some of the fungi down there actually eat soaps and other detergents as carbon-rich food, and they aren’t bothered by heat or acidity, either.
That means getting rid of them could be more than a little tricky.
More research is needed to identify exactly what varieties are most likely to be hanging out in your sink, but they’re almost certain that they’ll find reasons for at-risk people to be concerned.
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“Although these findings don’t present a health concern in the environment we are in, were the location a hospital or a care home, with many immunocompromised people, this finding could point to a serious risk to health. We would like to see cleaning protocols developed that can address the colonization of sinks and P-traps, particularly in environments where many people will use a single sink.”
I hope they keep us regular people abreast of these cleaning protocols, because I would like to implement them in all of my sinks as well.
