04-05-2025
Shunning laptop & mobile use while eating key to good health: Experts
Lucknow: Aayushi Mishra, a software engineer from Aliganj, had been experiencing stomach problems for months.
Each time she saw a doctor, she felt better for a while, but the problems kept recurring.
Finally, her family doctor, Dr Kalyan Malik from Thakurganj, found the reason behind the problem. Aayushi was constantly using her phone and laptop even while eating. He advised her to change this habit and clean her gadgets frequently. Slowly, her health improved.
Her story was referenced by experts on the eve of World
Hand Hygiene
Day. Doctors said they often come across patients with diseases that spread through touching, including stomach upsets, cholera, typhoid fever, common cold, influenza, and ringworm. These infections are transmitted due to contact with contaminated surfaces or infected individuals, and good hygiene can help reduce the risk.
Sponsored Links
Sponsored Links
Promoted Links
Promoted Links
You May Like
Click Here - This Might Save You From Losing Money
Expertinspector
Click Here
Undo
Devices like phones and keyboards can carry over 400 times more germs than toilet seats. Since we touch these gadgets all day, they can easily spread infections.
"People often don't realize that everyday gadgets like phones and keyboards can carry a lot of bacteria and viruses," said Dr Manodeep Sen, a microbiologist at Ram Manohar Lohia Institute of Medical Sciences (RMLIMS). "We touch many things during the day — doorknobs, money, bus rails — and the germs from these get transferred to our devices. Since we keep touching them again and again, it becomes a cycle of infection," he said.
Dr Sanjay Teotia, former director of Balrampur Hospital, said, "It may sound strange, but phones and keyboards can have more germs than toilet seats. This is because we rarely clean them, even though we use them all the time. We touch our faces and food after using them, and this helps germs spread without us even knowing."
Highlighting how easily germs can spread through contaminated surfaces, Dr PK Gupta, a pathologist, said: "In people with low immunity, bacteria and viruses can survive on surfaces for different lengths of time. When someone touches a contaminated phone screen and then touches their mouth or nose, they may unknowingly expose themselves to these germs, leading to respiratory or stomach infections. This is a common way of catching infections than many realize."
Dr Manodeep said that poor handwashing habits contribute to the spread of infections. "Many people don't wash their hands for long enough or skip areas like under the fingernails. Drying hands properly is just as important — wet hands can spread germs more easily. Even the method of drying matters. Reusable cloth towels, if not washed regularly, can also carry and spread germs," he added.
Good hand hygiene is important for people with weak immune systems, such as those with kidney transplants, autoimmune diseases, or diabetes. Dr Manodeep said, "For such patients, even a mild infection can become serious, even life-threatening, because their bodies can't fight germs well. So, keeping your hands clean is very important."
Dr Sanjay Teotia said, "People, who have had transplants or take medicines that lower immunity, are at higher risk. For them, even a small infection can turn dangerous. Washing hands regularly is not just advice — it's a key to staying healthy."
For working professionals, especially those who use computers and gadgets for long hours, following good hand hygiene is crucial. Dr Kalyan Malik advises people to be mindful of their habits.
"In Aayushi's case, using her laptop and phone while eating likely caused germs to transfer to her food. We worked on stopping the habit and making sure she cleaned her devices regularly," he said.
Dr Malik said that handwashing shouldn't only happen after obvious activities like using the restroom. "Professionals should also wash their hands before and after using shared equipment and clean personal gadgets often," he adds.
