November 21, 2011
Recently, a friend who works on a sportfish was infected by the potentially deadly staph infection, MRSA. He is OK now, but it made me think about how up close and personal we all are, the kind of germs we are regularly exposed to, and how seriously ill we can get in a short period of time.
It is startling to learn how little some of us know about the basics of good hygiene. Those of us who have worked in restaurants or hotels know the standards that must be upheld, but many in the yachting industry do not.
Here is a basic germ primer for three common onboard areas.
1. Laundry room. One of the cardinal rules of laundry is the proper sorting of items by color, fabric type and care specifications. Another important consideration is to sort by germ category.
To avoid cross-contamination, always wash galley towels separately from stew towels. (And please, please, please rinse food debris from galley towels before giving them to us to launder.) Galley towels often harbor grease, and bacteria will cling to it. Not only will that make an unsightly mess on our clean dishes and glasses, it is unsanitary. Wash galley and stew towels separately and in hot water.
Guests and crew receive laundry bags for uniforms and personal clothing, and when they are brought in for stews to wash, it is tempting to overload the machine to save time. Don’t. Water must circulate freely to remove and flush away germs and bacteria as well as dirt.
Wash bathroom towels, sweaty workout gear, and underwear in hot water, separate from uniforms and other clothing.
Temperature is important, too. Washing in cold or lukewarm water removes about 80 percent of bacteria. This is important because germs can be spread through the entire load and can remain on the walls of the washer. To be safe, wash high-risk items on hot, and dry them completely.
Once a month, disinfect the washers by running a load on hot with bleach, which is toxic to bacteria. Be sure to use the proper dilutions of bleach. More is not necessarily better, and it wears out the rubber parts of the machine.
2. Bathroom. The best way to prevent germs from invading your body is to wash your hands often, for 15-20 seconds each time. Soap and water don’t actually kill germs; they lift them off and flush them away.
As for antibacterial soaps, studies show they are no better than regular soaps at reducing bacteria and, in fact, have been shown to promote bacterial resistance.
Clean and disinfect the faucets and taps daily as they are the most likely places to harbor supergerms such as MRSA. Hand towels should be changed as often as possible, at least every three days.
Every time you flush the toilet, some of the dirty water sprays into the air. Close the lid before flushing to prevent this kind of contamination. (Closing the lid before flushing can also end one of the most common conflicts that men encounter: putting the seat down. Perhaps this could save our relationships as well as our health.)
3. Galley and crew mess. Bathrooms have a bad reputation for hosting threatening germs, but kitchens are where most of the germs in a living area are located. No matter how often you clean, scrub, and wipe down food preparation areas, germs are always present, and they can lead to colds, flu, skin lesions, ciguatera, and food poisoning.
Studies have shown that sinks, towels, sponges and cutting boards carry the most germs. Sponges, in particular, are full of spaces for germs to gather. To cut down on contaminants, always use separate sponges for dishes and counters, and run them through the dishwasher frequently to kill germs. Microwaving them on high for one minute will also work.
Disinfectant wipes or paper towels are a good option for countertops, since the contaminants go right into the trash each time. Take care when using wipes, because they are good at removing bacteria, but not killing it. Using it on a second surface just spreads germs around.
Cutting boards and counters have to be used and cleaned carefully to avoid cross-contamination. It is a good idea to use one cutting board for raw meats and poultry, and a different one for produce.
All this talk about germs makes me want to pull out the hand sanitizer. Luckily, that’s pretty easy these days. Alcohol-based sanitizing gel kills 99 percent of germs on contact, making them a sure winner.
For maximum effectiveness, apply to the palm of one hand and rub hands together, covering all surfaces, until they are dry.
If only keeping yachts germ-free were so easy.
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