Woman Who Works Out of Her Kitchen Shocked at Bacteria Levels After Swab Test

Like many of us during the COVID-19 pandemic, artist Lara Alcantara is still working from home. She even converted her kitchen into a home office and wrote a book while sitting at her kitchen counter.

But could the work space also be harboring nasty bacteria? To find out, Inside Edition swabbed commonly touched items, including her laptop, keyboard and kitchen counter.

Then we sent the swabs to IEH Laboratories in Seattle, Washington.

Five days later, it was time to reveal the results. 

The entire home-office area was covered in germs! The laptop and keyboard had a bacteria count of 140 million and the kitchen counter was even worse, with a count of 150 million. 

Experts say that's enough bacteria to make you sick.

Microbiologist and Rutgers University professor Dr. Donald Schaffner says lots of remote workers are eating and working at the same table.

“I think the home office can obviously be a focal point for microbial contamination. The levels that were detected give me some cause for concern,” Schaffner said.

Take it as a sign to give your work space a good scrub-down!

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