Your toothbrush is home to over 600 viruses, but are they really bad for you?

New research has revealed that toothbrushes and shower heads harbor over 600 viruses, many of which are unknown or poorly studied.

A new study conducted by researchers at Northwestern University, published in the journal Frontiers in Microbiomesrevealed that toothbrushes and shower heads accommodate a surprising number of virusesover 600, some of which have never been identified before.

These everyday objects, often considered clean due to their frequent contact with water, they turned out rich in microbes and virusesrevealing a world invisible to our eyes of microbial biodiversity present in our homes.

The study analyzed 92 samples of shower heads and 34 of toothbrushes in various locations across the United States, using advanced techniques D sequencingNA to identify viruses and bacteria present. Professor Erica M. Hartmann, head of the research, stated that the number of viruses discovered is “absolutely incredible”. Many of these viruses they were unknown or little studiedsuggesting that there is still much to discover about the microbial communities that live with us.

These viruses help control the growth of bacteria

Among the viruses identified there were also i bacteriophagesviruses that infect bacteria and play a crucial role in the regulation of bacterial populations. These viruses could have a significant impact on our health, since they help control the growth of bacteriaand may even have future therapeutic applications.

Bacteriophages could in fact be used for treat antibiotic-resistant infectionsopening new avenues for medicine. Research has shown that the microbes present in shower heads and toothbrushes are very different from each other.

The toothbrush, for example, houses a wider range of microbes than the shower head, as it comes into contact with mouth bacteria, food particles and other environmental microorganisms. An interesting aspect highlighted by the study is the types of viruses present in the samples they were very variablewith little similarity between samples. Each toothbrush and each shower head represents, in practice, a unique small microbial ecosystem.

Despite the presence of a wide range of microbes, Hartmann pointed out that most of them . Indeed, the excessive use of disinfectants can promote microbial resistance, making these microorganisms more difficult to eliminate. Rather than trying to eliminate them completely, the researcher suggests living with microbes, recognizing that they are part of our natural environment.