Shoppers warned over second-hand clothes ‘swimming in germs’

From London ‘s Brick Lane to New York’s Brooklyn Flea, vintage markets have become go-to destinations for savvy shoppers in recent years. But a new report might make you rethink your next visit to a flea market.

Dr Primrose Freestone, a senior lecturer in Clinical Microbiology at the University of Leicester, has warned that second-hand clothes are ‘swimming in germs’. Disgustingly, this includes bacteria, fungi, and viruses that can cause everything from athlete’s foot to diarrhea. ‘Demand for secondhand and vintage clothing has surged within the last few years,’ she explained in an article for The Conversation.

‘Pre-owned fashion is seen by many consumers as a cheaper, more environmentally friendly way to expand their wardrobe. ‘But as excited as you might be to wear your next secondhand purchase, it’s important you disinfect it properly first.

‘This is because clothing can actually be an important reservoir for many infectious diseases.’ Our skin is naturally coated in millions of germs which are then transferred onto the clothes we wear. However, germs that are normal for one person’s skin can be disease-causing to others.

‘Clothing is a well-known carrier of many disease-causing pathogens,’ Dr Freestone explained. ‘This means that germs from the original clothes owner’s unique skin microbiome could still be found on secondhand clothes if the items weren’t cleaned prior to selling. ‘It also means that any infections or pathogens they might have had when they last wore the clothes could still be found there.’

Previous studies have shown that clothes can harbour several infectious pathogens. This includes some (Salmonella, E coli, norovirus and rotavirus) that cause fever, vomiting, and diarrhoea, as well as fungi that can cause athlete’s foot and ringworm. Dr Freestone highlights a recent survey which found that second-hand clothes being sold at a market in Pakistan contained Bacillus subtilus and Staphylococcus aureus.

‘These bacteria can cause skin and blood infections,’ she said. ‘Parasites which can cause skin infections (such as dermatitis and scabies) have also been found on secondhand clothing.’ If you simply keep your second-hand purchases at room temperature, any pathogenic germs lurking on them will be able to survive for months. For example, germs on cotton or mixed-fibre clothes can survive for up to 90 days, while those on polyester fabrics can live as long as 200 days.

Thankfully, Dr Freestone says that there’s a simple way to avoid these nasty germs – wash your clothes at a high temperature. ‘It’s recommended that you wash newly purchased secondhand clothes with detergent at a temperature of around 60°C,’ she said. ‘This will not only clean any dirt from the clothes, but will also remove germs and inactivate pathogens. ‘Cold water will not work as well to get rid of pathogens within clothing.

‘So if a high-temperature wash isn’t possible, then use a laundry disinfectant to kill any germs present.’ Instead of simply throwing your second-hand clothes in with the rest of your laundry, Dr Freestone says that it’s best to keep the two separate. ‘You should try to initially wash secondhand clothes separately from regular laundry to reduce cross contamination of clothing,’ she added. ‘Soaking the secondhand clothing in a separate bowl of hand-hot (not boiling) water with antibacterial laundry detergent for two to three hours should eliminate any pathogens present. Follow with a regular machine wash.’

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