Experts have issued a warning, reminding people to regularly clean their shower heads or risk developing some serious health conditions. Research conducted by Trade Plumbing has found that dirty shower heads can harbour four main types of harmful bacteria that could result in a variety of issues.
According to the findings these include malassezia fungi and acanthamoeba which can cause eye conditions such as blepharitis, and in rare cases, vision loss.
Showerheads could also be home to malassezia restricta, which leads to scalp infections, as well as pseudomonas aeruginosa, which can result in ear infections.
Most concerning though is legionella bacteria. Although “extremely rare”, this is one to be mindful of as it can cause Legionnaires disease.
This is a severe type of pneumonia that can prove fatal if not dealt with.
But legionella bacteria is more likely to be found in a public facility rather than the home.
Plumbing expert, Peter Clayton, added that it’s not only important to clean your shower head for health reasons, but also to improve the quality of your showers.
“The build up of limescale on your showerhead can eventually obstruct water flow and lead to a weak and unsatisfactory shower experience,” he said.
“This is especially true for those who live in areas with hard water due to its high mineral content.”
How to clean your shower head
Peter suggested that it’s best to clean your shower head regularly if you wish to prevent the accumulation of limescale.
To do so you can clean your showerhead by soaking it in white vinegar.
“The acid in white vinegar is successful at breaking down the mineral deposits and removing bacteria on your shower head,” he explained.
“However, it’s important to ensure you are using distilled white vinegar and not any other type as brown vinegar can stain your shower head”.
For the first step, fill a container with white vinegar.
Place your showerhead in the container and make sure the full shower head is submerged.
If you don’t want to remove your shower head you can fill a bag with white vinegar and tie this around the showerhead using an elastic band.
Place your shower head in the container for 30 minutes – if your showerhead is made from brass then ensure you do not soak it in vinegar for over 30 minutes, as this could lead to corrosion.
Remove the shower head and scrub lightly with a toothbrush, which will get rid of any of the remaining limescale.
Remember to pay close attention to the nozzles and jets as these small crevices can harbour lots of bacteria.
Finally, rinse the shower head. Peter added: “Make sure to dry the shower head fully before attaching it, however, if your shower head is still dirty I recommend you replace it with a new shower head entirely”.