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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Poor hygiene makes me cringe - AIBU?

217 replies

Defenbaker · 07/09/2019 16:31

I've noticed that quite a lot of people seem to be clueless about basic hygiene, and I inwardly cringe when I see poeple doing certain things. For instance:

A woman served cake to people at a party. She served one slice then licked her fingers before offering slices to others (who all declined - think I wasn't the only one put off by that).
A cleaner at work picked up something dirty from the floor and threw it in bin, then emptied clean items from dishwasher without washing hands first. (She had disposable gloves on throughout, so perhaps as no dirt touched her actual hands she didn't think twice about it.)
A woman played ball with children in garden, then went into kitchen and began making sandwiches for people, without washing her hands first.
A woman in swimming pool changing room used a towel to dry her body off, then threw it onto the floor and dried her feet, before finally drying her hair with it. (I wondered how many people with athletes foot might have walked barefoot on that floor before she did that).

More generally, I hate it when people in cafes handle cash then serve/touch food without washing their hands first (it's widely known that there are lots of germs on money).

Maybe I'm more careful than some people, as I am emetophobic, which makes me very careful about food hygiene. Also I realise that there are germs everywhere, and children develop their imune systems by coming into contact with germs, so a totally sterile world wouldn't be ideal for humans, but AIBU to cringe at this sort of stuff?

Please share your pet hates here, re people's poor hygiene.

OP posts:
lazylinguist · 07/09/2019 17:57

Sorry, that Hmm was to BestestBrownies.

What on earth is the matter with putting pet bowls in the dishwasher with human crockery- please explain.

arethereanyleftatall · 07/09/2019 17:57

@Pippapotomus
With the exception of blowing it, which is a bit odd, everyone I know goes by the '5 second rule' if a bit of food falls on the floor. In a survey of 100 people with the only options being 1. Pop it back on the plate and 2. Have it popped back on the plate and then proceed to discard the entire plate because of it ; I'll wager 99 people would choose option 1 and only you for option 2.

lazylinguist · 07/09/2019 17:59

Some people are so prissy it's hilarious.

BestestBrownies · 07/09/2019 18:00

@lazylinguist because all the remnants of pet food and pet saliva swoosh around in the same dishwasher water that swooshes round all over the crockery that humans then eat off.

Mummyoflittledragon · 07/09/2019 18:02

Yanbu
And the rest of the stories are gross. 🤢
Dd has obviously taken cues from dh and me as she will only share drinks or food with us. I am a stickler for hand washing. I always made cakes for the staff room at school. No wonder some teachers on here say they won’t eat homemade cakes. I’m all itchy now!

Doesitevenmatternow · 07/09/2019 18:04

I wouldn't notice a lot of that stuff but I am not particularly observant.

Adults who don't shower daily and wash their hands after using the loo every single time are worse than Hitler imo.

SoyDora · 07/09/2019 18:04

because all the remnants of pet food and pet saliva swoosh around in the same dishwasher water that swooshes round all over the crockery that humans then eat off

The whole point of a dishwasher is that it washes your dishes. They are clean when they come out.

ChocOrCheese · 07/09/2019 18:04

Or put the dirty pet bowls in the sink/dishwasher at the same time as human crockery - @BestestBrownies: I just about get your issue with putting pet dishes in the sink with human dishes as we rarely wash things in the sink at high temperatures. But what's wrong with the dishwasher? If it doesn't wash hygienically then in theory you should have a separate dishwasher for the pet's crockery, no?

IceColdLemonade · 07/09/2019 18:11

People licking their fingers and picking food out of their teeth! Ugh!

I once sat on a bus and the woman in front of me loudly demolishing a bag of crisps. When she'd finished she licked every single one of her dirty fingers leaving them shiny. I also noticed she had dirty fingernails. It still makes me feel sick to think about it.

lazylinguist · 07/09/2019 18:14

Dishwashers make things clean. That's the whole point of them. If you're worriedabout things 'swooshing around', surely you'd be worried about the remnants of human food swishing around too. Pet food isn't poisonous you know.

1CantPickAName · 07/09/2019 18:15

People who don’t wash their hands after going to the toilet are gross. I hate seeing it in public toilets, at least pretend that you do!

I used to watch a friend’s dog, he was such a great dog and he would lick the kids faces and they would share ice cream with him. Until I saw him eat poop 🤢 I quickly put a stop to that!

I hate cats on the work surfaces, why do people allow it?

IceColdLemonade · 07/09/2019 18:15

I was once in the toilets across from the indoor market and I saw the lady who often served us at the fresh fish counter come in, go to the toilet and walk straight out back to her stall. Seriously, I never bought fish from there again!

BestestBrownies · 07/09/2019 18:15

@ChocOrCheese and @SoyDora Pet bowls/cutlery should be washed up by hand with hot soapy water and the old sponge/cloth just before it gets binned.

Dogs eat other animals' shit and lick their own cocks ffs! I do not want any of their saliva near anything I'm going to eat or drink out of thanks very much.

1CantPickAName · 07/09/2019 18:16

Also, people who clip their nails on public transport should be subject to corporal punishment!

flirtygirl · 07/09/2019 18:17

The people on here saying it doesn't bother them to many of the examples are why I never eat homemade dates or food when put and about. I rarely take from most people's houses when I know them let alone when I don't know them.

I however thought this thread was about poor body personal hygiene as there seems to be more smelly people walking around. If people can live in one room shacks and keep clean then the average british person is able to keep clean. Yet this seems to have bypassed more and more of the general public.

SoyDora · 07/09/2019 18:17

BestestBrownies if I didn’t think my dishwasher cleaned things effectively, I wouldn’t use one.

ChChChChangez · 07/09/2019 18:17

People who lick their fingers before separating a plastic bag for your food in a shop, are gross. And get offended if you ask for a clean bag. Amazing.

Pippapotomus · 07/09/2019 18:17

Arethereanyleftatall - it's not the being on the floor I had an issue with, it's two different people touching an item of food off someone elses plate whilst they are eating. And them throwing it back on. It was a spring roll and one of several so we didn't know which one it was.

Woodlandwitch · 07/09/2019 18:18

Those are all disgusting and if I noticed someone doing it would not want to eat or drink what they have touched after

Aridane · 07/09/2019 18:20

Things that make me cringe include people who calmly place their hands on the handrails on the tube

Why?

Eckhart · 07/09/2019 18:20

I think that if dog poo got on your hands when you pick it up, a lot less people would enjoy having a dog.

stucknoue · 07/09/2019 18:20

I would not have noticed to be honest, a bit lax here. Hasn't done me any harm

BestestBrownies · 07/09/2019 18:21

@lazyliguist that's practically a thread of its own Grin

Food remnants have no place in the dishwasher. Everything should be rinsed first before it goes in. The dishwasher is for a higher temperature 'hygiene clean' only (so no mucky rags tea towels need to be used to spread germs and towel fluff all over everything dry up).

nuggles · 07/09/2019 18:21

Totally agree with op!

Few months ago I had a sports massage booked at my gym. Was washing my hands in the toilets and the masseuse came out a cubicle and walked straight out without washing her hands.

Promptly cancelled

MrsPellegrinoPetrichor · 07/09/2019 18:21

A dishwasher on a hot cycle will kill anything off ,no need to wash pet stuff separately. Should we wash meat stuff separately and milk stuff separately too?