Do gym equipment and exercise mats spread germs?
Microbes thrive in the warm, damp environments found in many gyms, health clubs, and pools. But facilities that are properly cleaned and disinfected pose little serious risk, especially if you shower after working out, or at least wash your hands before touching food or your face. Worries about germs shouldn’t keep you from the gym. Words to the wise: Living involves sharing space and objects with other people and with the invisible flora of the earth. We cannot—and do not need to—walk around wrapped in plastic. People with impaired or underdeveloped immunity, such as the elderly, young children, pregnant women, patients undergoing chemotherapy, and those with certain diseases (HIV infection, for instance), do need to take extra precautions because they can get sick from lower exposures and are at higher risk for dangerous complications. But a healthy immune system (including the skin) is good at protecting against most microbes. Usually all that’s needed is commonsense precautions lik
