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Your computer's pretty clean, isn't it? A bit of dust here and there, but generally not too bad.

Right, try this. Put a blank piece of paper on your desk and now turn your computer keyboard upside down over it and shake.

Are you surprised by what's come out of it? Well, that's just the visible dirt and crumbs. Viruses like e-coli, MRSA and salmonella could all be living in your keyboards, ready for you to pass on or potentially become infected yourself.

Most of us don't realise how many germs are lurking in our keyboards and other computer equipment. According to a survey carried out by Durable UK, 50% of office workers wash their hands only four times during an average working day, whereas experts recommend a minimum of 10 washes.

Two-thirds of us consider our hands to be the dirtiest parts of our exposed body, and yet only 8% of us wash then when we arrive at work in the morning. And it's no better if you use a computer at home, because there are up to 10 million bacteria living on any desk where you rest your hands.

So what can you do to protect yourself?

• The main thing is wash your hands regularly. Almost half of people switch on their computers before doing anything else when they first arrive at work in the morning, despite having come into contact with millions of germs on the way into the office.
• 'Even if you're healthy, you can still become a carrier of infections and viruses that may harm other people,
• Clean your desk and computer equipment. Only 3% of companies have a cleaning service in place that cleans computer hardware with the proper equipment.
• Take a break at lunchtime. So many people eat lunch at their desk and this contributes to the amount of bacteria and viruses. If your keyboard keys are contaminated with MRSA, it will nearly always spread to your hands.

Recommended product:
Durable antibacterial gel