The COVID-19 pandemic is entering its third year, but a clean home is more important than ever. The pandemic has changed the way consumers view the cleaning process, according to speakers at the second annual Cleaning Summit by the Good Housekeeping Institute and American Cleaning Institute.

“Cleaning is caring really sends that powerful message that cleaning should no longer be viewed as a chore or be taken for granted,” said ACI President and CEO Melissa Hockstad. “We’ve seen during the pandemic that cleaning, hygiene, disinfecting and laundry products and practices are crucial to public health and well-being.”

No surprise, then, that 70% of Americans view cleaning as a way to ensure the health and safety of themselves and their families. In contrast, just 30% of ACI survey respondents view cleaning as just a chore.

Or, as Hockstad noted, active cleaning really shows that people care for one another.

“It ultimately ensures a healthy, safe and robust future for all of us,” said Hockstad. Members within the medical community agree with Hockstad’s assessment.


The Doctors’ Opinions

In a panel discussion with Liz Plosser, editor-in-chief, Women’s Health, healthcare professionals discussed how cleaning prevents the spread of COVID-19 and other illnesses.

During the early days of the pandemic, there was very little knowledge about how to stay safe, recalled Dr. Angela Chen, assistant director, Icahn School of Medicine, Mount Sinai Emergency Medicine Residency Program, and assistant professor of emergency medicine, Mount Sinai Hospital.

“But we did know that good hand hygiene and maintaining a clean environment worked against transmission of the disease,” recalled Chen. “We worked with very little information, so we fell back on best practices.”

Unfortunately, even those in the know can make mistakes. Shelley Webb, a retired registered nurse, noted that cleaning and disinfecting has been crucial throughout her career and now, at home, too.

“I was sanitizing and wearing a mask, but I could have been better at cleaning surfaces,” she recalled. “I got COVID and spread it. My partner is still on oxygen after two months. Clean your surfaces and follow best practices to keep your family safe.”

Scientists had very little information on the virus’ persistence in the environment, agreed Glenner Richards PhD, director of microbiology and analytical chemistry labs, Microban International.

“We did not know what we were dealing with, we didn’t know much about the specific virus,” recalled Richards. “We didn’t know how it was spread. Was it through touch? Through air? Through surfaces? We didn’t know how well the virus persists on surfaces.”

Scientists now know the virus survives for about three hours in the air, 72 hours on plastic and stainless-steel surfaces, and 24 hours on cardboard. 

“We know that the primary mode of transmission is through air and aerosols,” she said.

Richards noted that warm, humid areas such as bathrooms and kitchens, as well as doorknobs are all likely transmission sites.

Cleaning? Sanitizing? Disinfecting? Richards explained that cleaning refers to removing dirt, soil and other organic matter. However, bacteria and viruses can persist. Sanitizing is removing microbes from the surface—not killing them—to reduce their population. Disinfecting refers to killing the microbes.


Life-Long Healthy Habits

The US may be nearing the end of the pandemic phase of the coronavirus outbreak and entering a more endemic phase, according to experts. Still, good cleaning habits must persist.

“There are things that we learned that we should keep doing,” said Richards. “Hygiene is important. Cleaning is important.”

The cleaning lessons learned from the pandemic remain, as do common colds, influenza, gastrointestinal issues and Epstein Barr, noted Physician Assistant Jacqueline J. Spiegel, who is professor at Midwestern University and president of the PA Foundation.

“Parents know that household chores teach kids a lot of important skills: responsibility, time management and working as a team … but one thing I get is we are teaching our kids healthy habits they will use in their adult life to care for their families,” she said.