Do you change your toothbrush more often than your toilet brush? And how clean does your toilet need to be? A survey shows it.
Do women value cleanliness and hygiene more than men? Or is that just a cliché? t-online wanted to know exactly and asked.
Clean towels are a question of age
The Personal Care and Detergent Industry Association (IKW) recommends changing towels every two days. But do women and men really stick to it? No. Just over half (53 percent) of those surveyed only change towels once a week. One in five (20 percent) at least every second or third day – some even every day (5 percent). One in three (30 percent) of 18 to 29 year olds and one in four of 30 to 39 year olds consider this to be exaggerated. They say they change the towels a maximum of once a month – sometimes only once a quarter. As you get older, your attitude changes. The survey also shows that the older people are, the more often they say they change their towels.
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New toilet brush? Especially unimportant for men
The survey also shows that a new toilet brush is less important for men than for women. Almost every second person (47 percent) says they change the toilet brush less often than every six months – sometimes even never. For women, the proportion is just over a third (35 percent). A quarter of the female respondents replace their cleaning utensils every four to six months – one in five once or several times a month.
And how often is the toilet brush used? At least once a week, say two out of five respondents (37 percent). A quarter (24 percent) say they use a scrubber and cleaner more often. One in five people takes hygiene even more seriously: they clean their toilet sparkling clean at least once a day (21 percent).
Women in particular attach great importance to a clean toilet: more than one in two people (52 percent) clean the toilet at least several times a week – preferably daily. Men (48 percent) are satisfied with cleaning every one to two weeks.
Surprising: one in three people over 65 cleans the toilet at least once a day, according to the survey.
Germans change bed linen more often than they change their toothbrush
Ideally, most people put their toothbrush in their mouth in the morning and evening. So things should be particularly hygienic here, right? Not necessarily for the majority. The majority find their own toothbrush hygienic enough after two months – 46 percent therefore only replace it after up to three months. Almost one in six people (16 percent) only reach for a new toothbrush after four to six months or even less often.
For a third, this is not enough: the toothbrush head or toothbrush is replaced at least once a month – sometimes even more often.
By the way: Dentists recommend changing every two to three months.
However, Germans are more willing to change their bed linen: almost two out of five Germans (41 percent) say they change their bed linen once a month. Almost a third (31 percent) buy new bedding two to three times a month – and follow the advice of the Personal Care and Detergent Industry Association (IKW). However, for more than one in ten (12 percent), the bed has to be changed once a week. For many people it can't be rarer.
About the methodology
The survey was conducted online between January 30 and February 6, 2024 by Civey on behalf of t-online. Around 5,000 German citizens aged 18 and over took part.
