Considering that your washing machine is constantly filled with soap and water, you might be surprised to learn it could be a breeding ground for dangerous bacteria. According to a report published by the American Society for Microbiology, premature babies in a German hospital’s neonatal intensive care unit were repeatedly testing positive for multidrug-resistant pathogens, which they carried on their skin. Health care workers were tested, as were incubators, to rule out possible contamination.
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Testing showed the babies were being reinfected with the Klebsiella oxytoca bacteria, known for infections contracted in hospitals, including pneumonia, soft tissue infection, urinary tract infection and a blood poisoning that can lead to septic shock. When socks and hats given to the babies were tested, investigators were able to trace the source of the bacteria.
Instead of an industrial washing machine able to reach high temperatures and disinfect, the hospital was using a household energy-saving washing machine. Investigators found the Klebsiella oxytoca bacteria in the washing machine’s detergent drawer and on the rubber door seal. The bacteria were also found in two sinks nearby. After the discovery, the washing machine was removed from the hospital and the bacterial infections ceased.
Your washing machine at home may help remove dirt from your clothes, but it doesn’t sterilize them. The same goes for towels. Charles Gerba, a microbiology professor at the University of Arizona told Fox 59, “E-coli grows quite well on towels. Within about three or four days, you’ll get the fecal bacteria in the towel pretty easily cause it’s wet, it’s moist.”
He went on to explain, “When you do your towels with a cold water wash it’s hard to get them really clean because they’re so thick. You’ve got to use hot water wash and dry it really well.” He added that if you don’t wash your towels with hot water, “You’ll get more E-coli on your face when you dry it with a towel than if you stuck your head in a toilet and flushed.”
E. coli aren’t the only bacteria that could be hiding in your washing machine. Salmonella, meningitis and ringworm outbreaks have also been linked to laundry.