Do you wipe down your groceries when you get home?
If you do, you’re not alone, but a Queen’s University infectious disease expert says that wiping down store-bought items is not a necessary practice.
“What we know is that groceries and items that you bring into your home, are not really a significant source of transmission,” says Dr. Gerald Evans, Chair of the Division of Infectious Diseases.
“The inanimate objects that we are more worried about are high touch points, like doorknobs and railings.”
Dr. Evans says inanimate objects aren’t efficient carriers of the disease, and the virus becomes weakened when left on surfaces for a period of time.
He says transmission is much more likely through direct contact.
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“A virus, once it’s been out in the environment for a while, has undergone enough changes that it’s probably a lot less infectious,” says Dr. Evans.
“Less infectious than if you were standing right next to someone and speaking with them.”
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It appears that some shoppers took those precautions in the early days of the pandemic, but have eased off a little bit.
“In the beginning? Yes. I was super paranoid. It was so misunderstood, all of this stuff, so yeah, I got pretty freaked out,” says one Kingston shopper.
Others have maintained this practice, and don’t appear to be stopping any time soon.
“I wipe everything down, especially when I take it into my house,” says another shopper.
“I wipe it all down. Just to protect myself, I’ve been through cancer so I’m trying to do the most.”
Rather than wiping, Dr. Evans has some advice on how to keep the virus out of your home. And it’s something we’ve been hearing since day one.
“The best way to protect yourself and your home is to wash your hands,” says Dr. Evans.
“Soap and water or hand sanitizer is the best way to keep clean.”
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