You might be diligent¹ about running the vacuum over your carpet whenever it starts to look a bit scruffy², but shocking research has revealed that the average bedroom floor is ten times dirtier than a toilet seat.

地毯看起来有点脏的时候，你可能会很勤劳地用吸尘器清理，但是一项令人震惊的研究表明，一般来说，卧室地板比马桶圈要脏十倍。

 

The data, compiled by sofa and carpet specialist ScS, found carpets in the bedroom also harbor more than double the bacteria found in a living room, and ten times that of a gym floor.

沙发和地毯专业生产公司ScS汇编的数据显示，卧室地毯中藏匿的细菌是客厅地毯细菌的两倍多，是健身房地板上细菌的十倍。

 

Their findings also showed that almost half of Brits have admitted to never cleaning their carpets, making them an ideal breeding ground for colonies of disease-causing microbes.

研究结果还显示，近半数英国人承认从未清洗过地毯，使之成为致病微生物的理想滋生地。

 

Office floors were found to be the cleanest in the experiment—in which carpets and household appliances were swabbed to reveal levels of aerobic³ bacteria, yeast⁴ and mould.

研究发现，办公室的地板是最干净的。这项实验对地毯和家用电器都擦拭取样，以得出需氧菌、酵母菌和霉菌的数量。

 

Bedroom carpets were by far the dirtiest, with a combined bacteria and yeast level of 140 CFU per cm² (colony forming units per cm²) uncovered within them, as well as heavy mould.

目前来看，卧室地毯最脏，细菌和酵母菌整体水平达到每平方厘米140 CFU(每平方厘米的菌落形成单位)，地毯中还有大量的霉菌。

 

The cleanest surface swabbed was an office carpet, which contained less bacteria than a gym floor, toilet seat or living room carpet, possibly due to more regular professional cleaning.

最干净的擦拭样本表面是办公室地毯，比健身房地板、马桶圈或客厅地毯上的细菌要少，这可能要归功于更频繁的专业清洁。

 

The filthy⁵ results are perhaps not surprising considering 41 percent of 2,000 Britons recently questioned by BISSELL admitted they had never washed their carpets.

必胜家居清洁最近对2000名英国人进行了调查，其中41%的人承认他们从未洗过地毯。因此上述“肮脏的”调查结果也许不足为奇。

 

Some 84 percent of those polled by the carpet cleaning experts believed their carpets to be clean—with 63 percent were not aware that bacteria and allergens can live on the floor.

在接受地毯清洁专家调查的人中，约84%的人认为他们的地毯是干净的，63%的人不知道地毯上会有细菌和过敏原。

 

Carpets can be a breeding ground for bacteria and dust mites⁷, which can lead to health issues including breathing problems, eczema and other allergy⁸ symptoms.

地毯可以成为滋生细菌和尘螨的温床，这会导致呼吸问题、湿疹和其他过敏症状等健康问题。

 

Experts recommend vacuuming at least twice a week and having carpets professionally cleaned at least once a year to avoid growing levels of bacteria, mould and yeast.

专家建议每周至少用吸尘器吸尘两次，并每年至少对地毯进行一次专业清洁，以避免细菌、霉菌和酵母菌的滋生。

 

Hygiene⁹ expert Dr Lisa Ackerley said: 'This research is of concern as unwashed carpets can become homes to bacteria and germs and in particular dust mites, which can put some people at greater risk of asthma¹⁰, eczema and perennial¹¹ allergic¹² rhinitis caused by allergies¹³ to dust mite⁶ faecal matter.

卫生专家丽莎·阿克利博士说：“这项研究很重要，因为未经清洗的地毯可能成为细菌和致病菌的家园，尤其是尘螨，这可能使一些人更容易患尘螨排泄物过敏引起的哮喘、湿疹和常年过敏性鼻炎。”

 

'Each mite produces about 20 waste droppings every day, equating¹⁴ to around 20,000 particles of faeces in every cubic foot of air'.

“每只螨虫每天产生约20颗粪便，相当于每立方英尺(约合0.028立方米)空气中约有2万个粪便微粒。”

 

Dale Gillespie, Head of Acquisition at ScS, dubbed¹⁵ the results of the company's research 'shocking', adding people should 'put time' into ensuring their carpets are clean.

ScS的采购主管戴尔·吉莱皮斯称，公司的研究结果“令人震惊”，并补充说人们应该“花时间”清洁地毯。

 

Bella Middleton, Founder¹⁶ of Norfolk Natural Living, added: 'I am not at all surprised that your carpets are dirtier than your loo seat, largely because people clean their bathroom a lot more often than they do their carpets.

诺福克自然生活的创始人贝拉·米德尔顿补充道:“我一点也不惊讶地毯比马桶圈要脏，这主要是因为人们清洁卫生间的频率比清洁地毯的频率高得多。”

 

'Psychologically, we are all more aware of the need to give the loo a good clean, despite the amount of dirt and detritus¹⁷ that gets trampled¹⁸ through our carpets on a daily basis.

“从心理上来说，我们都更明白要把厕所好好打扫一下，尽管我们每天都会踩到地毯上大量的灰尘和碎屑。”

 

'It is often difficult to see just how dirty carpets are, especially if they're dark in color. However, it is crucial to consider just how much bacteria collects in your carpets everyday, from dead skin cells, pet dander and outside dirt.

“通常很难看出地毯有多脏，尤其是深色地毯。然而，重要的是要考虑到每天地毯上的死皮细胞、宠物皮屑和灰尘中会聚集起多少细菌。”

 

'Unwashed carpets are also a haven¹⁹ for dust mites which can affect allergy sufferers. These findings highlight the sheer amount of bacteria we're around everyday at home—it's enough to make anyone pull out the cleaning products.'

“未清洗的地毯也是尘螨的聚集区，会影响过敏患者。这些发现凸显了我们的家中细菌数量之多，这足以让人去清洁打扫。”

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