These Disgusting Pictures Prove Why You Need To Clean The Inside Of Your Car

Most cars are home to at least four times more bacteria than the handrail of a public bus, according to new research.

If you're a parent, the stats are even more horrifying. In the test by car care brand Simoniz, a vehicle owned by a father-of-four was found to have a whopping 23 times the bacteria of the bus handrail.

Simoniz

The study compared the germs found on the driver's seat and dashboard controls with those on other items.

The father's car was also found to contain double the bacteria on a TV remote and over six times that found on the handle of a kettle in an office kitchen. Many of the cars swabbed also had the same levels of bacterial infection as on a toilet flush handle.

Simoniz

The experiment tested levels of potentially toxic yeast, too, which can cause allergic reactions and skin, eye, throat and lung irritation, particularly for those susceptible to allergies and asthma. It discovered most cars were breeding grounds for these.

Surfaces were tested to find out how many colony-forming units (CFU) were present per square inch with the results visible in photographs taken of the swabs.

Simoniz

While the study only looked at a small sample of five cars in total, hygiene expert Luke Rutterford agrees many of our own vehicles are likely to be just as grubby.

"The results of the experiment, although pretty disturbing, are not entirely surprising, particularly when it comes to high levels of bacteria found in the car.

"Areas in the car, such as the gear stick, control centre and steering wheel are high frequency touch points, and become an area of continuous bacterial contamination. This is more so when drivers eat and drink in the car which can allow general debris to become a breeding ground of bacteria," continued Luke.

"The take home message here is to get your car clean and then keep it clean. It's a good idea to keep a hand sanitiser in the car at all times, to ensure your hands are fresh and you're keeping germs to a minimum," Luke continued.

Someone pass us the anti-bac spray, pronto.

Topics: Life News, Health

Amber Ascroft

Amber is a freelance beauty editor and lifestyle journalist. She's written for the likes of STYLIST, Red, Harper's Bazaar, Mail Online and Good Housekeeping and starred on ITV's This Morning.