Incessant hand washing, fear of public restrooms, refusal to share food — living in a vacuum, all these worries would become obsolete.
In reality, the world is teeming with microorganisms with the potential to spread infectious disease. People react to the knowledge of germs in different ways — some with nothing more than an apathetic shrug, others with a compulsive drive to clean.
Are we living in a world too obsessed with the quest for immaculate hygiene?
MSU attempts to provide sanitation for students and others on campus. Full-time, as well as student maintenance employees work in residence halls, dining facilities and other university buildings in an effort to meet health-code standards and promote a clean campus environment.
Health standards are set and followed by food service employees, and maintenance workers clean restrooms and other public areas multiple times a day — even if they're already clean.
"It's reasonable to want to know what you're stepping into," said Tom Hart, a student supervisor of maintenance in Wonders and Case halls. "I'm sure there's people out there who won't step into a public restroom."
As part of his job, Hart disinfects public restrooms at least three times a day. Maintenance workers handle garbage in the residence halls, as well as clean public restrooms and mop the floors.
Hart said he's satisfied with the sanitation in the dorms, knowing the work that he and other employees perform.
"With germs nowadays," said Hart, a human biology senior. "Who knows what you're going to catch?"
In Mayo Hall, however, English junior Maureen Nagy said the cleanliness is less than perfect — especially in her floor's community bathroom.
"I'm not too impressed with that, for what I pay," Nagy said.
Arts and Letters sophomore Megann Nielsen, who also lives in Mayo Hall, said sometimes it seems like days go by without the community bathroom being cleaned.
Nielsen said that last year she was completely satisfied with the cleanliness of her hall, but added that this year is completely different.
During the winter months, people should be more careful with sanitation, Nagy said.
"All kinds of bacteria can just thrive," she added.
But campus sanitarian Betty Wernette-Babian said the problem is not new germs, but the knowledge of them. Scientists have a greater ability to research germs and inform the public of possible dangers.
For nearly 30 years, Wernette-Babian has been a health inspector. As campus sanitarian, she is in charge of sanitation for all facilities owned by MSU or contract operations on campus, such as restaurants at the Union and International Center.
She oversees evaluation, inspection and licensing for on-campus preschools, day-care facilities, public swimming pools and food service across campus.
"Viruses have been around forever, but we didn't have the scientific means to identify them 20 years ago," Wernette-Babian said. "Because it is so public and so visible, the public perhaps has a perception that sanitation standards might be insufficient."
E. coli is an example of a common virus. Although it has been around for years, the scientific community has done specific testing to identify it and determine what the consequences may be, Wernette-Babian said.
The germ-obsessed public opinion may be due to the media's portrayal of germs and viruses, she added.
"There's a fine line that we all tread where you don't want to sensationalize something, but you want to make the public aware of it," Wernette-Babian said.
Hart and other maintenance workers use disinfecting chemicals — such as sodium hypochlorite, which is found in bleach — to wipe down bathrooms and faucets to prevent cross contamination, or the spread of infectious microorganisms from one surface to another.
Another technique used to prevent cross contamination is the use of disposable paper towels instead of cloth towels. In public restrooms, the use of electric hand dryers further prevents the spread of germs.
"What I always think about is our wasting," Nagy said about the amount of paper towels she sees thrown out in her hall. She said she understands people using it to prevent the spread of germs but is concerned students might be too wasteful.
"I'm constantly picking up extra paper towels," she said.
There may be concern about campuswide sanitation, but people could be placing too much trust in the hands of workers.
Chris Danian, general manager of McAlister's Deli in the Union, said the restaurant rarely has sanitation problems, since all the food is precooked.
"We don't handle anything raw," Danian said.
"No grills or deep-frying. There is absolutely no grease in this restaurant."
Despite Danian's claims, the Ingham County Health Department's records show that the restaurant was cited for improperly storing food items during its most recent inspection last fall.
Qdoba Mexican Grill, located beside McAlister's Deli in the Union, was cited for nine critical violations, including improper food storage and unsafely presented products.
Danian and other representatives from Qdoba Mexican Grill and McAlister's Deli could not be reached for comment Monday.
Employees in residence halls' cafeterias have to follow specific regulations regarding the food they work with. Hours of training, coursework and an examination are required for incoming workers.
MSU follows codes in compliance with the Food and Drug Administration health code, which was adopted in Michigan in 2000, Wernette-Babian said. Prior to that, the university had not updated its health code since 1978.
"In food service operations, we try to look at those areas that we know could provide a potential for illness," Wernette-Babian said.
This includes ensuring food is cooked and stored at a proper temperature. Food served in the cafeterias must be either below 41 degrees or above 140 degrees Fahrenheit, Wernette-Babian said.
Often, if food is left out for too long a period or falls out of temperature range, it is either thrown out or brought back to a safe temperature, Wernette-Babian said. In the past, one large amount of food was prepared at once, and workers attempted to keep it in the condition required to serve it.
Batch cooking, or preparing food so that final steps are performed directly before serving, may "save them a considerable amount of food waste, and it's a better quality food product," Wernette-Babian said.
Although Hart lives off campus, he said he tries to let habits he acquired as a maintenance worker carry over into his home life.
"Since I do work maintenance, I try to keep things clean around the house," Hart said. He added that his roommates do their part with tasks like cleaning the bathroom or taking out the garbage.
Wernette-Babian is confident that people will work to prevent the spread of germs and illness.
"We need to provide a positive message to say, 'This is what you can do to maximize your health and promote good health to those who you're around,'" she said.
What precautions are reasonable to avoid spreading infection?
"Remember what Mom told us," Wernette-Babian said. "You need to wash your hands after you go to the bathroom. Before you eat, you have to wash your hands."
Staff writer Matt Flint can be reached at flintmat@msu.edu.
