Health security

12 Things You Need to Clean After Returning from the Outside World

Social distancing and sheltering in place are important tools to help flatten the curve and reduce the spread of COVID-19. Disinfecting and cleaning anything that enters your home from the outside world—including yourself—is also paramount.

Scientists and the medical community are still discovering the various ways in which COVID-19 can be transmitted, but they all seem to agree that proper hygiene is an important step in the fight. What does that mean when it comes to cleaning the items you bring into your home?

"One of the challenges we have is that there is a lot of baseline information about the particular virus that causes COVID-19, SARS CoV-2, but very little basic research has been performed to determine how long it can survive on surfaces," says Meghan A. May, MS, PhD, a professor of microbiology and infectious diseases at the University of New England College of Osteopathic Medicine. "The good news is that SARS CoV-2 is highly susceptible to many disinfectants, including alcohol-based sprays or gels, ammonium compounds, detergents, bleach-based cleaners, and heat."