ECJ EUROPEAN Cleaning Journal

If you usually leave the lid up when you flush the toilet, you may want to reconsider. Because it has been revealed to Business Insider that "when you flush a toilet, the swirling water that removes your waste from the bowl also mixes with small particles of that waste, shooting aerosolised faeces into the air".

This unfavourable phenomenon is known as 'toilet plume'. Microbiologist Philip Tierno told Tech Insider: "It is a good idea to lower the seat, especially if the bathroom is used by multiple people."

This is because aerosol plumes can actually reach a height of 15 feet when the toilet is flushed. And these potentially infectious bacteria and viruses can reach far across the room and even contaminate places such as the nearby sink, the floor and even your pot of toothbrushes.

Business Insider says: "The microbes also remained on the toilet bowl's porcelain surface after multiple flushes, and while the number of microbes decreased after the first few flushes, the population levelled out and remained until it was scrubbed off (with or without a detergent)."