Of course, there will still always be a few bathroom legends and stigmas that even the most knowledgeable home plumber can’t shake. It’s time to shed some light on those dirty bathroom myths.

Myth: Toilet Seats Are Some of the Dirtiest Surfaces Around

The idea that toilet seats are a haven for scum and grime is an absolute myth, as plenty of studies have shown over the years. One of our favorites comes from ABC News, which revealed not too long ago that, when it comes to bacteria growth, the average toilet seat rang in at fewer than 1000 bacteria per square inch – clean enough to eat off of, by some experts’ metrics. By comparison, bathroom floors yielded more than 2 million bacteria per square inch, and napkin/paper towel holders ranked even more highly than that.

Even if toilet seats were as dirty as many of us believe, it’s also important to remember that germs don’t really affect you unless they have the chance to enter your body; bacteria on the skin of your bare bottom doesn’t really rank in importance compared to the bacteria that can get on your hands, where it then has the opportunity to come in contact with your eyes and mouth.

The big takeaway, then, is that washing your hands after you do your business is much more important than laying down some flimsy tissue paper beforehand.

Myth: Handwashing Doesn’t Matter

As we just mentioned, washing your hands is key to stopping the spread of bacteria, germs, and disease in the bathroom. With that said, plenty of myths and shortcuts have arisen around handwashing; corporate safety firm Cintas debunks a few big ones here.

The biggest myths it’s time to reject? Using hand sanitizer is not an effective substitute for washing your hands with warm water and soap; you must wash your hands for 15 to 30 seconds to fully clean them; water temperature does not affect microbe removal, so it’s not always true that the hotter the water, the better; and hand dryers are not actually any more sanitary than paper towels, as the hot air being blown out can actually spread bacteria around the whole bathroom.

Fact (Kind Of): Your Toothbrush Is Covered in Poo

This legend – that every time you brush your teeth, you’re ingesting fecal spores is a favorite “gotcha” tactic, perfect for catching friends off-guard and one-upping whatever gross story was just told.

But is it really true? The answer is a little bit “yes” and “no.” In plainest terms, the answer to whether your toothbrush has microscopic fecal matter on it is a yes, according to a study from researchers at the American Society for Microbiology. With that said, your next question is likely a variation of “should I care?” And to that, the answer may just be a no.

Your toothbrush may have trace amounts of fecal matter, but so do many of the other surfaces in your home. As the world famous Mythbusters once revealed when examining this very factoid, a “control” sample toothbrush – one held far away from any bathroom – was just as likely to be speckled with microscopic fecal matter as a toothbrush kept next to a toilet.

The reality is that, as gross as it may be, there are trace amounts of fecal matter just about everywhere – it’s a completely unavoidable fact of life. And if you need a little bit more reassurance, the The American Dental Association told HuffPost that there’s “insufficient clinical evidence to support that bacterial growth on toothbrushes will lead to specific adverse oral or systemic health effects.”

Have any other bathroom myths you think we should tackle on our blog? Dealing with a bathroom horror story or nightmare of your own? Don’t hesitate to drop our team a line today!