Trying on "new" clothes.... imagine trying on new clothes that the

[HysteryDiagnosis]

"People of Walmart" have had their way with.... criminy.

http://www.aolhealth.com/2010/03/16/bad-health-habits/?ncid=webmaildl3

When Philip Tierno, director of microbiology at New York University, took cultures from new clothing, he discovered a shocking level of filth -- from feces and vaginal secretions to diarrhea-causing viruses. Protect yourself by wearing a T-shirt and undergarments when you try on clothes and scrubbing down your hands after shopping. Then once you get that new outfit home, definitely wash it before you wear it.

[MineralMan]

1. Now, isn't that a pleasant post?

Thank you so much...

[HysteryDiagnosis]

2. Just looking out for your welfare brother man. n/t

[CaliforniaPeggy]

3. Another reason I don't shop there...

As if...

:scared:

[virgogal]

7. Don't shop where? No retailer was mentioned.

[MineralMan]

9. Actually, the OP included the phrase "people of Walmart"

That's a pretty clear mention, I think, and rather classist, I must say.

Bottom line is that we're all exposed to other people's germs every day, and we, in turn, expose others to ours. As long as we live in society, and interact with that society, there is no escaping exposure to other people's left-behind organisms.

I'd think the risk from trying on or wearing clothing purchased at any store is far, far less than, say, touching a door handle, where dozens, if not hundreds, have placed their dirty little hands.

Perhaps a personal shopper, followed by laundering new clothing in boiling water would suffice. Besides, then you would not have to encounter the hoi polloi in the ugly world out there.

"People of Walmart" indeed. Feh!

[Newsjock]

12. "People of Walmart" is a website

http://peopleofwalmart.com

[HysteryDiagnosis]

13. I recommend that no one visits that site... that's just me. n/t

[virgogal]

14. Yes,the OP did,but the article didn't. Very misleading IMHO.

That said,germs are everywhere as you stated.

Glass bubble,anyone?

:-)

[MineralMan]

16. The "Bubble Boy" comes to mind...

[MineralMan]

18. And the article included a link to some "Style" blog, but

there the trail ended. That blog didn't mention Walmart, either. That, apparently, was an addition by the OP.

[virgogal]

4. I didn't see Walmart mentioned. Could happen at Bloomingdale's.

[HysteryDiagnosis]

5. Mmmmmbyeah... you have a valid point. n/t

[MineralMan]

6. Let's just see:

Has anyone here gotten sick after trying on clothes at a store? I assume most of us have tried on clothing.

[virgogal]

8. I got a head cold once after buying a pair of gloves. You just never know !!!!

[HysteryDiagnosis]

10. Don't wear your gloves on your head dear. n/t

[virgogal]

15. :- )

[MineralMan]

11. I'd guess the gloves weren't the source. More likely the money

handed to you in change, or the pen you signed the credit card slip. Or maybe the handle on one of the many doors you opened that day. Those are all more likely sources for one of the rinoviruses that cause the common cold.

[virgogal]

19. I was being sarcastic but I guess I messed up. I've lived too long

to worry about germs.

The germs will be here long after I'm gone.

[MineralMan]

20. Actually, I knew you were, you germ-laden human, you...

Personally, I bathe in Purell at least six times a day to ward off contamination by those less cleanly I may encounter in my perambulations.

[virgogal]

23. Hold on a sec,gotta look up "perambulations." :-)

[MineralMan]

25. ;>}

[pipi_k]

17. On one of those medical shows the other day they mentioned

that some stores will accept returns on things like underwear, even after they've been worn. Whether they know the underwear has been worn, I have no clue, but it does happen.

So it's not just people trying on clothing in whatever store (and it could happen in some of the "high end" stores as well as the discount stores), it's that they're accepting returns on underwear that's already been worn.

While it's true, as someone else said, that money and doorknobs are disgustingly filthy, it's sort of a given. Underpants...no. I never actually thought about anyone trying them on or buying them, wearing, then returning them and the store putting them back on the sales floor as is. Yech. That's just creepy-gross.

[virgogal]

21. And I also can't imagine anyone wearing new underwear without laundering first.

[MineralMan]

22. Really. They use "sizing" chemicals on new clothing to keep it

all nice and wrinkle-free. It's really good practice to wash just about anything made of fabric before wearing it. If you don't, a contact dermatitis might develop in sensitive people.

Of course, then you can't return it after wearing it once, a practice I believe some people engage in.

[virgogal]

24. Lots of sizing in bed linens too.

[MineralMan]

26. Towels, too. I learned that when I was about 20 and had purchased

my first set of new towels. I couldn't figure out why they didn't work very well after one of my Purell showers. Hmm...but once I washed them, it was like a miracle.

[pipi_k]

29. Yep, it's the sizing...

I like the way it smells and feels.

New. Clean.


Now I know it might not be.

[pipi_k]

28. I do, but the underwear is in sealed packages

I don't spend a lot on underwear, which means I buy the Fruit of the Loom brand, etc. Nothing that comes on a hanger. Or loose, in a bin.

Bras...well, I figure if the tags are still on, nobody's worn them for any length of time. I don't try them on, so it never occurred to me that anyone else would, either.


I love the "new clothing" smell and feel, and it's a shame that we can't trust people or stores to not do gross things with clothing so that I have to wash the stuff first.

[jmm]

30. I worked in a clothing store when the "Thong Song" came out.

I did not get paid enough to deal with all the women who had never worn them before that would try to sneak them into the fitting rooms then run around the store asking me how they fit. I'd try to let them know it was illegal in this state to try them on or return them but that didn't stop them from trying and some of my coworkers would still let them try them on or pass them off to me when they wanted to return them.

I've always washed new clothes before wearing them because I have allergies but that job nearly made me a germaphobe.

[jmowreader]

27. It's not JUST germs, but that's an important reason to wash new clothes

They put all sorts of weird chemicals like formaldehyde in the fabric...not sure WHY, but they do. I can smell it on the cloth.