A biologist has cautioned that public bathroom hand dryers could do more harm than good. After using a public bathroom, it is essential to thoroughly wash your hands with soap to help eliminate any bacteria that can be left behind. This can help reduce the spread of diseases and viruses and maintain good hygiene.
However, choosing to use a hand dryer straight after could undo all the beneficial work you just accomplished by washing your hands. Laura González, a biologist who regularly provides advice on social media, told her TikTok followers that using a public bathroom hand dryer could be “making this worse”.
In a TikTok video originally posted in Spanish, she said: “Have you ever gone to a public restroom and dried your hands with a hand dryer? Well, you’ll probably stop doing that after listening to me.
“Most people, when they go to a public restroom, do not close the lid when they flush the toilet. Even if you don’t see them, there will be many drops full of bacteria and microorganisms suspended in the air. And what do you think the hand dryer does?”.
“Take all that s****y air and put it on your freshly washed hands. In short, instead of washing your hands, you are making them even worse.
“And that bacteria ending up in your hands comes from other people. Several studies have shown that hand dryers, especially with a powerful jet, can spread microbes to more than one metre, contaminating surfaces.”
Similarly, research from the University of Connecticut and Quinnipiac University in the USA discovered that exposing a petri dish to bathroom air under varying conditions showed that when a hand dryer was operated, up to 254 bacterial colonies developed.
In contrast, the petri dishes exposed to bathroom air without a hand dryer produced either just one bacterial colony or none whatsoever.
Researchers theorised that hand dryers drew in bacteria from the bathroom atmosphere and deposited it onto users’ hands.
They also determined in their study that most bacteria from hand dryers originated from the toilet’s air.
Better alternatives to hand dryers
If the thought of using a hand dryer in public conveniences revolts you, numerous alternatives exist to maintain clean, bacteria and virus-free hands.
Laura continued: “Obviously, you won’t die, but in places of heavy traffic, it’s a little gross, don’t you think? For all these reasons, the most hygienic option is to dry your hands with paper towels for three reasons: it quickly removes moisture, reduces the transfer of microorganisms, and, what’s more, you can use that same paper towel to, once you’ve washed your hands, turn off the tap, open the door, and turn off the light.
“This way, you avoid touching surfaces that were previously contaminated. You might say: ‘Laura, you’re overreacting!’ Well, I like to have clean hands.
“And one thing that very few people do is wash their hands before peeing. I mean, do you have dirty hands? Then wash them before touching your private parts. I’m not telling you to just wash them first, also after.
“And if there is no paper, air dry your hands, do this and avoid hand dryers. So now you know, don’t use hand dryers if you don’t want to get your hands dirty after washing them.”
Research from Mayo Clinic which analysed various hand drying techniques similarly discovered that drying hands with paper towels after washing was the most effective method to successfully eliminate bacteria. The study also revealed that utilising a paper towel for drying reduced the likelihood of contamination occurring in a bathroom.