‘Bathtime Fun-gi?’ Rubber Duckies and Other Bath Toys Can Host Harmful Bacteria and Fungi

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“Rubber ducky, you’re the one, you make bathtime so much fun,” goes Ernie’s famous Sesame Street song, echoed by generations of children around the world. But while duckies and other rubber or plastic children’s toys can entertain young kids in the process of getting clean, many of these toys, themselves, leave much to be desired in terms of cleanliness.

A 2018 study published in the journal Biofilms and Microbiomes revealed the disturbing reality of germs on bath toys promoted by the warm, damp conditions of tubs and bathrooms. “Bath toys from real households are colonized by dense biofilms with complex bacterial and fungal communities,” the study explained.

The study concluded that “the easiest way to prevent children from being exposed to bath toy biofilms is to simply close the hole” at the bottom of ducks, but, they recognized, “where is the fun in that?”

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The study examined 19 real bath toys that had been used by Swiss families, alongside six similarly designed, new bath toys “under controlled conditions with either clean water prior to bathing or dirty water after bathing.” While the composition of the bacteria and fungi varied on the water supply and the person taking the bath, there was consistent and diverse growth inside the ducks and other toys nevertheless.

Part of the problem is that the materials ducks are usually made of feed the bacteria. “(The plasticizers) migrate out of the plastic into the water. The bacteria like to eat them,” Frederik Hammes, lead researcher for the study, told CNN. In addition, the ducks live in an almost perfect environment for bacterial growth: the bathroom. When you put children in who bring their own host of germs into the mix, the possibilities are endless.

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Potentially dangerous bacteria such as “Staphylococcus spp., which is a known pathogenic relative of Listeria spp., could be detected in 47 percent of the real bath toy biofilms,“ the authors explained. Perhaps even more disturbing, the researchers found that ”Streptococcus spp., an indicator for fecal contamination, was identified in 50 percent of all real bath toys.”

Along with bacteria, the toys, most commonly made of PVC or silicone rubber, also attracted the growth of fungi, “identified in 58 percent of all real bath toys and in all dirty water control toys.” As the study noted, “the majority of the real bath toy biofilms showed positive results for Exophiala, members of which are potential agents of human and animal mycoses [fungal infections].”

The iconic, “uncapsizable” rubber duck, designed by Russian sculptor Peter Ganine, which was patented in 1949 and sold over 50 million units in subsequent years, has a design feature that makes it particularly conducive for germ development: the hole on the bottom. When water that has been in contact with many different surfaces and substances, including the faucet, bathtub, bath products, and the child’s body, gets inside the duck, it often stays for a long time.

The study also noted that what kids do with the toys, and the dirty water inside them, can pose a big health risk. “Squeezing water with chunks of biofilm into their faces (which is not unexpected behavior for these users) may result in eye, ear, wound or even gastro-intestinal tract infections.”

So, what are parents to do with this knowledge? While the scary statistics might have some rounding up the toys and tossing them into the trash, there are ways of sanitizing rubber ducks and other bath toys.

One mom blogger recommended fixing the problem of dirty-water accumulation by hot-glueing the hole in the bottom. She suggests, “If you dare leave the rubber duck as is and it gets moldy, squeeze it to suck up distilled vinegar and leave the vinegar inside overnight. Repeat.”

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Other solutions endorsed by the study include sterilizing bath toys. Home living guru Martha Stewart has a cleaning solution formula that includes one-half cup distilled vinegar, a drop or two of dishwashing liquid, and a gallon (approx. 4 liters) of warm water. By soaking the toys in the solution for 10 minutes then cleaning them with a sponge, she maintains you can eliminate the growth of harmful bacteria.

Many sites offering tips for cleaning agree on one common point: drying. Making sure that ducks and other toys, along with the bathroom itself, get a chance to dry is vital. Whether you put them on the edge of the tub or, even better, on a drying rack, make sure to squeeze out as much water as possible. Opening a window or turning on the extractor fan after every bath or shower is also a great way to keep humidity down.

Researchers caution against going to extreme lengths about germs on bath toys. As the study’s lead researcher Frederik Hammes told CNN, “a bit of bacterial exposure is not that bad.” Being exposed to normal amounts of these bacteria helps strengthen the immune system; it’s when the bacterial colonies get too big or when the person’s immunity is compromised that illness arises.