so who else admits to putting their toothbrush in the dishwasher

[ThatVikRinA22]

after watching "how clean is your house" tonight on Ch 4 i ran upstairs, grabbed our toothbrushes and put em in the dishwasher! (whats the betting i forget to take em back up tonight?)

did anyone else do it? go on admit it....

[madlentileater]

no, but I did boil some toothbrushes once, they had fallen in the (clean actually) toilet and I was too mean to chuck them out...so I boiled them...but they all went into funny spiral shapes and had to be chucked out anyway!

[ThePhantomPlopper]

I put the DC's toothbrushes in the dishwasher all the time. Didn't see How Clean Is Your House though.

[MaureenMLove]

I put mine in the dishwasher already too!

[AnAuntieNotAMum]

I put my washing up brushes through the dishwasher, but toothbrush? My dishwasher tablets include calgon in them....really wouldn't want to be tooth brushing with traces of that!

I soak mine in salt water/and or tea tree oil if I have a cold or sore throat or something.

[belgo]

yes, been doing it for a while, haven't seen it on tv.

[Furball]

I posted a while a go that i put my toothbrushes in the dishwasher - weekly!

All i got was yuck, urgh and thats gross....

[crumpet]

never heard of it. What did people do before dishwashers?

[crumpet]

mad. seriously.

[Furball]

AnAuntieNotAMum - but you eat your food off the plates and forks etc

[FritesMenthe]

buy a new one

[DuelingFanjo]

I think that's just a weird thing to do, a quick swill uner a hot tap never did me any harm.

[ThatVikRinA22]

well according to Kim and Aggie your toothbrush (if its in the same room as your loo) gets faecal matter on it from loo flushing, also bacteria build up from old food etc so - they said you can put it in the dishwasher to clean it!

you are meant to change your toothbrush every 3 months - but have to confess i hadnt so after watching how clean is your house last night i was loathed to put it back in my mouth until cleaned - so it got whacked in the dishwasher!

they seemed to think it was a perfectly fine thing to do so am gonna give mine a weekly wash.

[LionstarBigPants]

There was a myth busters programme on a while back about fecal matter on toothbrushes. They tried a number of scenarios e.g. In usual toothbrush rack in bathroom, another in bathroom under a glass, another kept on back of loo, another in kitchen etc. As I recall when they tested them after a week or two they all had about the same levels of fecal matter on them. Seems it comes from the environment generally.

Can't say I've ever thought about putting in the dishwasher, something makes me go but not sure why.

[verygreenlawn]

Mine go in a little Milton every day.

[Horton]

You people are crazy.

I read something somewhere which suggested that exposure to a healthy range of animal and human faecal matter made a positive difference to whether children were likely to develop asthma and allergies.

Just stirring the pot a little.

[ThatVikRinA22]

worry not horton - my children have plenty of other faecal matter to contend with in this house which is full to bursting of bloody animals!

im still gonna stick my toothbrush in the dishwasher! it got it lovely and clean!

[Horton]

Yes, I imagine once you're over about ten, exposure to faecal matter is prob a negative rather than a positive!

[AnAuntieNotAMum]

Furball - that's true but toothbrush gets up closer and sometimes gums bleed. Also, the material is possibly more absorbant.

Lionstar - I saw a programme too but in this one the toothbrush by the loo had lots of fecal bacteria on it.

[dogonpoints]

there'll be faecal matter everywhere in teh room then , won't there.

You;ve gone too far.

[madusa]

surely most people put the lid down on the loo before flushing to avoid spray from the toilet reachung all around the bathroom?

[AnAuntieNotAMum]

madusa - no, I think only the minority do

[LyraSilvertongue]

What a good idea. I put my dish brushes in but never thought to put toothbrushes in.
Although DSs have battery-powered toothbrushes so perhaps not such a good idea after all.

[LyraSilvertongue]

Our new house has a separate loo from the bathroom. so glad about that.

[Horton]

I must say, I don't bother. It's clearly not making any of us in this house ill, so why worry?

[CNyle]

"surely most people put the lid down on the loo before flushing to avoid spray from the toilet reachung all around the bathroom?"

no
they presume their body will cope with the germs