Bacteria fears turn Britain into nation of obsessive cleaners

Britain is becoming a “germo-phobic” nation, with people spending record amounts on cleaning both themselves and their homes.

It has led to a boom in sales of antibacterial cleaners and soaring numbers of Britons who now carry pocket-sized handwash with them wherever they go, said analysts Mintel.

The germ-free craze is bigger in Britain than any other leading European market, according to Mintel’s study.

Almost £1 million a day is spent on cleaning British homes, a 4.4 per cent rise in the past two years, from £295m in 2009 to £308m last year – despite the recession cutting household budgets in general.

But it is a 12 per cent rise in spending on antibacterial multi-purpose cleaners that accounts for most of this rise, increasing from £66m to £74m in that time.

This reflects growing fears over the kind of debilitating germs and bacteria that can lead to various illnesses.

The fear appears to outweigh any concerns that children in ultra-clean homes do not build up a natural immunity to allergies and ailments like asthma.

Around 13 per cent of cleaning products available in this country have some kind of antibacterial claim, said Mintel.

This compares with around 5 per cent in countries like France or Germany, who are less obsessed with killing germs.

The research also found that the same obsessive “germophobia” extends from the home to the hands.

Almost half of all adults (46 per cent) regularly use anti- bacterial hand wash. And the growing trend to carry a small tube of sanitising handwash on the move means 16 per cent now do so, said Mintel’s figures.

It also found 7.3 million Britons, 14 per cent, admit to being more concerned about germs today than they used to be.

However, Professor Hugh Pennington, emeritus professor of bacteriology at the University of Aberdeen, said that in general people had less to be concerned about in relation to bacteria than they did 50 years ago.

“We’re less at risk than we used to be, and the gadgets that we use are more personal than they used to be, which reduces the risk as well,” he said.

He said that, generally, soap and water were more than adequate for personal use and that strong household cleaners were only really needed in specific situations, in areas where young children played on the floor or where raw meat was being handled.

Mintel’s figures suggest an increase in gadgets using touchscreens is increasing the awareness of spreading germs by hand, with three in ten people saying they would consider using a special cleaner or polish for their gadgets.

However, Prof Pennington said the likes of mobile phones and iPads did not pose a great threat.

“Generally speaking, these types of devices are made of plasticky materials which are not particularly good environments for the bacteria to do anything other than hang in there for a while and then die off,” he said.

“They don’t like dry [environments] and they certainly don’t like sunlight. So the only issue is if they [the devices] are communal and used by people in rapid succession. Even there, the risk is not that great.”