Top 10 Places Office Germs Hide

It's Wellness Wednesday at Arcus and that means we all clean our desks and door handles with Clorox wipes. It means the Arcus Wellness Committee passes out vitamin drops to the entire team. In the middle of winter, it's important to stay healthy and track down those pesky germs. I am an avid user of Purell: each desk at Arcus is equipped with a bottle of hand sanitizer and throughout the building there are many Purell stations! The Arcus Wellness Committee has put together the top ten places germs hide in the office.

10. The restroom - This is an obvious one. Sadly, some people still do not wash their hands after using the restroom. Wash your hands!

9. The coffee station - Got a Keurig? A Flavia? A good old Mr. Coffee? All of them are smothered in bacteria. Wash them inside and out daily.

8. Handles - A large number of people have direct hand contact with door, closet and drawer handles. Just face it: they are contaminated. We wipe our handles every week on Wednesday! We post signs around the Arcus Corporate Headquarters asking Team Members to wash their hands.

7. Carpeting - Carpets are covered with outside dirt. Steam clean them regularly to keep the germs and allergens at bay.

6. The microwave - Everyone touches the buttons on your office microwave daily. Wash your hands before starting in on your leftovers for lunch.

5. The phones - Your desk phone and especially any shared phones in the building are surely covered in germs. Clean them before each use.

4. Your cell phone - It doesn't matter if you carry a Blackberry, Android or iPhone, your phone is filthy. Clean it at least once a week with an antibacterial wipe.

3. Your keyboard and mouse - It doesn't hurt to clean your keyboard or mouse before using them every day. Use a disinfecting wipe and compressed air to clean it thoroughly.

2. Office supplies - Most of us chew pens and pencils or at least hold them in our mouths. Carry your own pens and don't share them.

1. Your desk! - The average office desk contains 20,961 germs per square inch! Clear your clutter and wipe it down now.

Stay healthy!