How bacterial do you think a public baby changing station is?

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LittleLando

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You know those public baby changing stations in public restrooms? You know like malls, restraunts, fast food places etc... How bacterial do you think they are? Most people probly don't clean the table after their use! You don't know who used it last or what mess they made! The worst thing you can do is plop your baby there and assume the table is clean because you can't see feces. But really there is a lot of bacteria thriving on these tables! Check this out!

http://www.thedenverchannel.com/news/changing-tables-beds-of-bacteria-

What would you do to protect your child?

I just found this interesting and I don't Know why!
 
Most parents carry a changing pad or sheet with them and this needs to be wiped down or washed often. Also, parents carry wipes with them so wiping down the area before (and after) would help with the germ issue.

I also heard shopping carts at stores can have fecal material in them from where parents put there babies in the "seat" the carts have. Most stores today have disinfecting wipes as you enter the store and I always wipe down my cart. I also carry a small bottle of hand sanitizer in my car as I heard gas pumps can have germs on them, as well.

We live in a germy world! ;)
 
There's a lot of bacteria on most things. I would imagine that the vast majority of public bathroom changing tables do get disinfected at least once a day, along with the rest of the bathroom. Compare that to various things that babies encounter around the house - pets, soft toys that aren't regularly washed, things that have been on the floor, etc. People frequently overestimate the risks they and their family face while out and about, and underestimate the risks that they face at home, because they have illusions about being "in control" at home. Equally, there are risks that people overlook - for example, probably one of the dirtiest thing in the average house is the computer keyboard, because they hardly ever get cleaned.
 
On Boston's MBTA, sometimes in the trolley cars, there are used poopy baby diapers stuffed under the seats.
Very dirty.
 
I would say that changing stations are very unsanitary to the extreme make sure you always take the proper precautions like ^^ zipperless stated above you can never be too careful.

Oh and the old ball pits that they used to have at Mcdonald's were disgustingly filthy!!! Just saying of course things have changed now they have removed most of the "play places" out of mcdonald's resturants.
 
BluefireJay05 said:
Oh and the old ball pits that they used to have at Mcdonald's were disgustingly filthy!!! Just saying of course things have changed now they have removed most of the "play places" out of mcdonald's resturants.

When I go to a place for kids' parties like Chuck E Cheese, all I see are germs. Thankfully they have hand sanitizer there now.
 
Akastus said:
I would imagine that the vast majority of public bathroom changing tables do get disinfected at least once a day, along with the rest of the bathroom]

Having cleaned the bathrooms at the retail establishment I work at, and seeing how often this job gets neglected by my coworkers, I can tell you that you're probably wrong.
 
Don't forget when homeless people use it as a shelf for their never-before-washed clothes. (Oh, the joys of having a public toilet.)

Illinoise said:
Having cleaned the bathrooms at the retail establishment I work at, and seeing how often this job gets neglected by my coworkers, I can tell you that you're probably wrong.

I second this without a second thought.

zipperless said:
I also heard shopping carts at stores can have fecal material in them from where parents put there babies in the "seat" the carts have. Most stores today have disinfecting wipes as you enter the store and I always wipe down my cart.

HA! Go to enough stores, one of these days you'll just find a large patch of brown "mud" caked onto them. No disinfecting wipe will save you there, and, if my experience with poop on carts is normal, none of the other staff care enough to clean it off (or even leave it in the back until it is...). You need something done right, in a timely fashion, you gotta do it yourself.

Why do you think those wipes are there, anyways?
 
Remember, even though a little bacteria is good for us, having the wrong kind in can kill, especially a baby or elderly!
While it's okay to play in the mud, lick a tree, eat a bug etc... it is much, MUCH more dangerous to touch a door handle. Why? Humans carry every single disease humans can have. I don't mean one person does carry them all, but we as a collective. So while it's quite fine to get some dirt in your mouth from somewhere humans don't poop in or sneeze in, it will be quite a different tale to get involved with stuff like hepatitis.

So every time I use a public restroom, every space my naked skin touches, I WILL disinfect it with alcohol-based products (don't use non-alcohol-based stuff, it makes microbes resistant. You can find a lot of articles and research about this subject) and you know, I haven't even had a flu for years now.
But when I'm camping, and I know the group.. yeah, I don't care! Let's share the same flask, swim in mud and sleep in a crowded tent :')!
 
They say we all should be checked for hepatitis c.
Every time I use a public toilet I end up cleaning it .
Some were not trained to hit the spot or put up the seat .
So what makes you think they clean the changing table.
Now mom's have shopping cart seat covers.
 
When I used to work at this one grocery store, I'd always put the raw meats and fish car away from the child's seat spot as possible. One day, a customer moved the bags from where I put them right back in the seat. All I could think was "I fear for both the child who might sit there next, and your children should you ever even have them." I'd normally wipe down that seat spot the next chance I'd get.
 
BluefireJay05 said:
Oh and the old ball pits that they used to have at Mcdonald's were disgustingly filthy!!! Just saying of course things have changed now they have removed most of the "play places" out of mcdonald's resturants.

I loved the ball pit at Chuck E. Cheese's as a kid. I heard a couple years ago that they got rid of them though. :/
 
Dear lord, employee stories about the play places and some little kids leaving surprises on the slides... Glad I don't play on those things.
 
I was never a big fan of those baby changing stations, but that was also because I was never a big fan of carrying around a diaper bag. When I would go out alone with our diaper-aged kids, I would change them before I left, often change them as soon as I got home, and if I had to change them while we were out, I would do it in the car if I possibly could. We had a spacious SUV, and the cargo area in back was a great place to change diapers--if it wasn't too cold. I used those changing stations a few times, though, and perhaps I was lucky, as I never found them to be in terrible condition.

Of course, there can be germs on seemingly-clean surfaces, but we weren't the parents who carried around the Purel gel and squirted it on everything. If the world's population is decimated by superbacteria, the parents who habitually overuse antibacterial gel, spray, and wipes will share a lot of the blame. Immune systems are like kids' brains. They need to learn, and germophobic parents are their worst enemies.
 
For whatever it's worth, after reading this post, I've made it a point the last two days to wipe down the changing station at work. LOL
 
Illinoise said:
For whatever it's worth, after reading this post, I've made it a point the last two days to wipe down the changing station at work. LOL

My hero!

lol
 
Illinoise said:
Having cleaned the bathrooms at the retail establishment I work at, and seeing how often this job gets neglected by my coworkers, I can tell you that you're probably wrong.

I am a porter at my nearby grocery store and I was asked to wipe the thing down by the store's sectary. The interesting part is that I am the only one who considers doing that. After reading this now I am going to make it a commitment. LOL
 
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