Your Stanley cup may have more germs on it than a toilet seat, grim study shows
Stanley Cups are all the rage at the moment. Easily identifiable thanks to their large handle and distinguished straw, they were first popularised by eco-friendly, health-conscious, teenage TikTokers - and now they are everywhere.
TikTokers in America have been documenting their experiences queuing overnight at a Target supermarket car park in an effort to secure a special Starbucks edition, which retails at an eye-watering $54.50 (£42.99). While one popular video showed a man jumping across a Starbucks counter in an effort to steal a hot pink limited edition of the flask.
The Stanley Quencher H2.0 - one of the cult favourites, will set you back up to £47.18, and comes in a variety of colours. But there is something that all Stanley Cup owners should be aware of - and that's the amount of germs their container might be harbouring.
A recent has found that the average reusable water bottle - such as a Stanley Cup - contains 40,000 times more bacteria than a toilet seat. Even more troubling, only a quarter of users washed their water bottles only a few times a week, with nearly one in five cleaning them only a few times a month.
London rubbish removal company, Clear It Waste reports that bacteria such as E. coli, Klebsiella and moulds can accumulate in your eco-friendly water bottle, leading to gastro illnesses, urine infections or even pneumonia. It's important that users clean their water bottle with warm water and washing up liquid after each use, and soak overnight in a half vinegar, half water solution if needed.
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It comes after Dr Chisom Ikeji - an expert in all things health and skincare - shared another, surprising, warning against regularly using water bottles with straws. She regularly posts advice on TikTok and has garnered an impressive 230,000 followers.
In a recent post, Dr Ikeji explained how her mother was doing micro-needling - a popular skincare treatment to renew skin cells - and advised her client to stop smoking to avoid worsening the wrinkles around her mouth. Commonly known as 'smoker's lines' - the thin vertical wrinkles form over time as smokers overuse muscles around the mouth.
"Then I thought, what do I do that is exactly like this?" the doctor said. "It's using my water bottle religiously. As someone who loves to stay hydrated, I use my water bottle all the time and I am constantly sucking on that straw."
Dr Ikeji described this movement as 'very similar' to smoking but added it was 'maybe not to the same extent' as inhaling a cigarette. "So, listen to this message and stop using your straw water bottle constantly."
People took to the comments section, with many users grateful for the warning. One person wrote: "Thank you! I get lip filler now to combat deep straw lines from straw use for a decade." Another commented: "Dr your skin is flawless. [I'll] be doing what you're doing." While a third added: "Good call out! No more straws."
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