A healthy gym routine can help you avoid common germs that can lead to illness.
While germs can be contracted at the gym, the risks do not outweigh the benefits of a good workout.
Practising good hand washing hygiene, covering cuts and breaks in the skin, wearing shoes, cleaning equipment before and after use, and bringing towels and mats can help keep germs away.
Surely fitness gyms will reopen in a few months! Sometimes, it is difficult just to get to the gym. Once you are there, the last thing you have to worry about is coming into contact with dangerous germs.
In
fact, according to a survey of over 1,000 gym-goers
of gyms, sanitary practices were the biggest pet issues
pets of the respondents, with the following topping their list:
More than half of the
gym goers observed that bathroom users do not wash their
their hands and continue to use gym equipment.
Thirty-five per cent
of men admitted that they never clean their weights after using them,
while more than 25 per cent of women admitted that they never
swept cardio equipment.
38.4 per cent
of gym-goers fail to clean their equipment in the
afternoon while 21.2 per cent fail to do so in the late evening.
‘È
really important to go to the gym and be healthy and people
don’t (have to) worry about getting sick … keeping them from the gym. I
health benefits are great and the risk of infection is quite
low for most people,’ Dr. Nirav Patel, medical director of the gymnasium, told Healthline.
Nirav Patel, medical director at the University of New
Orleans.
However,
Patel said there are some germs to be aware of so that you can
you can properly safeguard yourself.
Staph bacteria
Infections
by staphylococcus and MRSA
can live on gym equipment such as machines, free weights and
mats, as well as on towels, benches and in changing rooms.
‘If
want to protect yourself, clean equipment using wipes or antibacterial sprays
provided by gyms or use your towel as a barrier between you and
the equipment,’ Patel said.
Jason
Tetro, microbiologist and host of ‘Super Awesome Science Show’, agreed
agreed, but said that people do not regularly clean equipment
equipment before and after use, it’s a good idea to take other preventative measures.
‘Make sure
that all wounds are covered before you start training. This
will help reduce the chances of skin infection. Do your
best not to touch your face after touching a surface. This
can reduce the chances of introducing a potential pathogen,’ he told
Tetro to Healthline.
He
added: ‘When you’re done, take a shower with soap shortly after exercising to remove any germs that might have come in.
exercising to remove any germs that may have come onto your
skin while you were exercising. Also, make sure your clothes are
washed and dried regularly. ’
Fungal infections
Athlete’s foot
and itching are often caused by a group of fungi called
dermatophytes, which can also cause ringworm. They can be acquired
from the locker room environment.
‘The
athlete’s food is caused by fungi that live everywhere but are associated
with damp, humid and wet environments,’ Patel said.
Change
wet clothes and then airing and washing them when you get home is a good
hygienic practice, Patel said.
‘Change
your shoes frequently so that they have a chance to
to air out,’ Patel added. ‘Wearing materials that
absorb moisture can help sweat evaporate, so it’s not causing
a damp and humid environment, and walking on the gym floor in your
shoes instead of bare feet can help prevent those fungi.’
I
viruses
The
plantar warts are caused by the human papillomavirus (HPV) and usually
develop on the heels or feet.
‘Do not
walk [barefoot] on damp, wet environments where it lives. Take a
shower and rinse with clean water,’ Patel said.
Herpes
gladiator herpes, also known as opaque herpes, is caused by the herpes virus
simplex type 1.
‘It comes
from Roman-era fighters who would get herpes because they were
fighting in close contact with each other,’ Patel said.
The
athletes who participate in contact sports today can still contract herpes
matt.
‘Avoid
shared equipment and towels and using your own clean things is
important in this situation,’ Patel said.
The viruses
airborne respiratory viruses are another concern in gyms, he
observed Tetro.
‘While
people should not go to the gym when they are sick, it is difficult to
to stop them. If you happen to see someone coughing, sneezing or
showing general signs of shedding, you might want to avoid that area at least
a minute after the person has left. You also want to clean
the equipment to make sure you don’t pick up viruses from surfaces and
sending them into the respiratory tract by touching the face,’ Tetro said.
Patel
suggested intervening with the sick person.
‘If
someone in a class is coughing and sneezing and not performing good etiquette for
the cough, then you can ask them to take steps to cover up the
cough or give them a Kleenex or hand sanitiser. Or, go
to the other side of the room or use other equipment,’ he said. ‘But
this could be the case in any public environment … not just in the
gym.’
For
regarding drinking from public fountains or coffee pots and eating snacks
offered at the gym: ‘I’m not terribly worried about that. The
food and drinks are generally kept at a reasonable hygiene level,’
said Patel.
However,
if you plan to drink or eat refreshments provided by the gym,
you should practise common sense. If cups and plates look dirty or
as if they haven’t been rinsed in a while, use a disposable cup
disposable cup or bring your own reusable cup.
‘I tell
many people during the cold and flu season to
undergo flu and practice good hand hygiene. The
most of the time, you have the flu not because someone sneezed in your
your face, but because you touched something or you are around people who cough or
sneezing constantly, so when you pick up that
phone or touch the door handle and touch your face without good
hand hygiene, [you contract the disease],’ Patel said.
Conclusions
While the
germs can be contracted at the gym, the risks do not outweigh the benefits of
a good workout.
‘The
risk that people take simply by going to the gym is sometimes
exaggerated because of the one story we hear in the news, but that does not
mean that it happens all the time. At the same time, people die
every day from heart disease and going to the gym helps with that,’ said
stated Patel.
Practice
good hand hygiene, cover cuts and breaks in the skin, wear
shoes, cleaning the equipment before and after use and bringing towels and
mats can help keep germs away.
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