A stunning new survey by the Bradley Corporation of Menomonee Falls found that roughly a third of Wisconsinites occasionally use public restrooms without washing their hands — and an exact 4 percent “usually don’t or never do.”
Only 66 percent of the 301 state residents that responded to the poll said unequivocally that they “always” wash their hands. For the rest, the story was more vague. Some chose the option “usually or about half the time,” in addition to that reprehensible 4 percent that confessed to rarely washing.
Men seem to be less likely to wash in public restrooms than women. Almost 40 percent of men reported frequently seeing other men leaving the john without washing their hands, as opposed to only 18 percent among women.
Bradley recommends singing “Happy Birthday” twice to yourself (whether it’s your birthday or not) to make sure you’re spending at least 20 seconds at the sink. Most Wisconsinites dry their hands after only 5 to 15 seconds, the survey found, and that’s just gross.
