Kitchen Cleanliness Study: ‘Visually Clean’ Not Necessarily Hygienic

Kitchen Cleanliness Study: ‘Visually

 Clean’ Not Necessarily Hygienic

There is a consensus opinion among doctors and medical experts that the kitchen must be cleaned hygienically in order to keep gastrointestinal infections (GI infections) at bay, but a majority of Indian homemakers are unaware that their ‘visually clean’ kitchens are not necessarily hygienically clean and can harbour as many disease-causing germs as their toilets.

Mumbai, 12^th February 2012:   Visually clean kitchen is only a superficially clean kitchen if it is not properly disinfected and sanitized, a new survey conducted by the Indian Medical Academy (IMA) among 1,400 homemakers from Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Kolkata, Bangalore, Hyderabad and Pune, and 500 doctors across the country, has found.

While 87% of homemakers responded that the removal of dirt, dust, grease and oil qualified as adequate kitchen cleaning, and nearly 95% of them believe that ‘visually clean’ implied hygienically clean, only 13% felt it important to remove germs and bacteria from their kitchens. In contrast, 100% of doctors asserted that ‘visually clean’ only means superficially clean and not hygienically clean.

“The general perception of kitchen hygiene among Indian homemakers stems from what appears to be visually clean as opposed to a properly sanitized and disinfected kitchen where the priority is to get rid of disease-causing germs,” said Dr. Preetaish Kaul, Consultant of the Indian Medical Academy.

Common food-borne Infections Infectious agent Present in Symptoms Bacteria: E.coli, Campylobacter, Salmonella Raw or undercooked meat, poultry, eggs, vegetables, un-pasteurized milk, fruit juices, water Diarrhoea, vomiting, abdominal cramping, loss of appetite, fever, weight loss, dehydration Virus: Norovirus, Rotavirus Contaminated food and water Nausea, vomiting, watery diarrhoea, abdominal pain, headache, fever Protozoans: Giardia lamblia Contaminated food or water Diarrhoea, abdominal pain, bloating, fatigue

 

While the respondents gave importance to dusting and cleaning their bathrooms at regular intervals (2% did it daily, 18% twice a week, 36% weekly, 40% fortnightly and 4% on a monthly basis), none of them felt that their kitchens ought to be cleaned on a daily basis (0% daily, 0% twice a week, 1% weekly, 8% fortnightly and 14% monthly). Significantly, the frequency of dusting and cleaning the living room and bedroom was much higher since it was perceived that these are the most occupied or scrutinized areas in a home.

“Although an overwhelming majority of homemakers are aware that eating out increases the risk of enteric infections on account of unhygienic conditions, very few of them have considered the fact that their own kitchens could be just as unhygienic since they do not sanitize or disinfect their cooking spaces,” said Dr. G. Venkateshwar, MD, General Medicine.

The survey revealed that kitchen sinks are cleaned least frequently compared to utensils, chopping boards, stoves, kitchen slabs, kitchen towels and cloths, refrigerators and appliances. Besides, most Indian homemakers prefer to use detergent powders, bars and liquids, even plain water, to clean their utensils, sinks, kitchen slabs, towels and cloths, but the proportion using an antibacterial formulation ranges between 8% and 5% only. Meanwhile, 87% doctors recommend using an antibacterial bar, liquid or gel. In fact, 73% doctors said that kitchen towels and cloths that are used for cleaning, if not disinfected properly, may cross contaminate utensils.

“In this context, disinfectants have been shown to be effective against food-borne pathogens, and to be more effective  than detergent-based cleaning alone, but the proportion of homemakers using some sort of antibacterial formulation is negligible,” said Dr. G. Venkateshwar, MD, General Medicine.

All of the homemakers surveyed said that food-borne illnesses like diarrhoea hit their families, ranging from frequently to less frequently, and 97% of them attributed it to eating outside food, but 73% doctors cautioned against ignoring the possibility of home food being contaminated. The doctors further specified that of the factors leading to cross contamination of food and causing GI infections, the kitchen and its associated articles ranging from the sink to towels and cloths played a significant role after unclean hands and contaminated water.

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