Hand Towels Vs. Hand Dryers. Which one to use? Here's the winner.

You may have faced this dilemma very often - whether to wash your hands and wipe them with a hand towel or to use the hand dryer.

Researchers tested the bacteria left on the skin after both instances and the results may just astound you.

Wiping with hand towels is significantly better than warming them under a dryer.

Here's why:

Use of towels reduced the bacteria count by nearly 50% while the dryer increased them by 200%.

The dryer has a plethora of bacteria inside already which makes them non-conducive to use. The air inlet as well as the nozzle are a repository of bacteria.

"Every single warm air dryer had high bacterial counts on the air inlet, while 97 per cent had them on the outlet nozzle surface, too." says the author in the book Curious and Curioser. 

Hence, opt for hand towels that are reusable so you don't end up wasting paper. Also good hand towels, like the one below, are made up of organic cotton, further ensuring no chemicals run-off on your hands and that they dry quickly too.