The spot in the car with the most bacteria is just a short reach away from the steering wheel.  If we get sick, it may be to blame.  

We spend more than four years of our lives in vehicles, and there are plenty of germs in there with us. There are a few spots inside the car that hold more germs than others, and every time we brush our fingers against them, we transfer bacteria, oil, and grease.  After disinfecting doorknobs, smartphones, and TV remotes at home it always feels like a small victory, but getting in the car and touching things can cancel out all of that good work.

The germiest place in the car is the car stereo, according to CompareTheMarket, and it can hold more bacteria than a toilet seat.  Eww. Bacteria builds on the car stereo buttons until one day we get the sneezes and wonder why.

The dirtiest parts of the interior of the car:

1.  Stereo

2.  Gearstick

3.  Indicator (blinker)

4.  Steering wheel

Don't even get me started on the chewed up gum and Dum Dum wrappers that I find in the back seat of my SUV. That can't be good, and someone needs to teach my kids how to get determined about cleaning up, and stick with trash until it's all the way in the receptacle.  Oh, right!  That would fall on me.

Comparethemarket.com swabbed an office toilet seat to compare that bacteria level to the bacteria inside cars and found that car stereos are four times dirtier than a toilet seat.  Who would have thought!  Gear sticks were about three times, or 331%, dirtier than a toilet seat.  And parts of the family car were shown to be twice as dirty as a work van. So, chicken fingers and Cheerio crumbs create more mess than hammers, nails, and Shop Vacs.

While we're working hard to hose down the house with disinfectant, we can't forget the car.  I did see one woman in a parking lot over the weekend wiping down her dash and steering wheel after a trip inside the grocery store, and it reminded me to do the same thing.  Especially the car stereo.

Because turning up the volume should make us feel better, not worse.

MORE INFO: 7 easy ways to stop touching your face

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