New Does NOT Mean Clean!
Ever buy clothes and just stick 'em on without a wash? This report from will change your mind -- and turn your stomach!
Folks have long ragged on my compulsive need to rip the tags off and wash new clothes the minute I get them home, but this report from "Good Morning America" totally vindicates my actions!
They tested a variety of store-bought clothing -- from pants to underwear to blouses -- from three different retail chains and the results will give you PAUSE.
Their expert, Dr. Philip Tierno, director of microbiology and immunology at New York University, found bacteria all over the place. And here's where it gets extra NASTY.
"On a jacket, Tierno discovered evidence of feces, skin flora and respiratory secretions, especially in the armpit and 'close to the buttocks.'" And on a silk blouse, he discovered "vaginal organisms, yeast and more fecal germs."
Makes you wonder exactly what folks get up to when trying on clothes in a dressing room! I mean, seriously ... what's the matter with toilet paper? Do people really think their a$$ is so haute that only silk will do?
Tierno goes on to explain that these germs, or "organisms," can "survive weeks or even months on clothes."
"Some garments were grossly contaminated with many organisms ... indicating that either many people tried it or ... someone tried it on with heavy contamination. In a sense, you are touching somebody's armpit or groin. You may not come down with anything and, most cases you don't, but it's potentially possible."
Aside from diarrhea, clothes can also carry nasty bugs like norovirus and MRSA (a staph bacteria), Tierno said.
Um. EW!
Let me guess ... you're doing laundry now, aren't you?