Kids mean many things, and one of those is 'more cleaning'.
They can't help it. Under a certain age they have tiny little immune systems you need to mindful of.
Above a certain age and, well, they just get really dirty sometimes.
So many a parent will have a veritable arsenal of cleaning products to deal with spillages, stains, sticky work surfaces, smudges, smears and the general detritus of childhood.
But at least two of the products aren't doing much good, according to Dr Clare Lanyon, a biomedical scientist.
What to ditch.
According to Dr Lanyon, a scientist at Northumbria University, antibacterial wipes a complete waste of money.
Antibacterial sprays and wipes are widely used (Image: Getty)The same applies to antibacterial sprays too.
The reason being, Dr Lanyon explains, is bacteria can multiply in as little as 20 minutes.
"Some bacteria can divide every 20 minutes so it doesn't take long for one cell to become one million cells i in fact it would only take around 6.6 hours,” Dr Lanyon told The Telegraph .
So what should we be using instead?
The solution is pretty simple.
You can't beat soap and water, apparently"Our research found that a lot of antibacterial cleaning products were not as effective as good old fashioned soap and water," Dr Lanyon explained.
Soap is a more effective cleaning agent to antibacterial wipes and sprays because it often has more ingredients that can break down the cell walls in bacteria.
Dr Lanyon conducted a recent experiment where she found a "dramatic growth" of bacteria just 12 hours after cleaning a kitchen using the wipes.
Bacteria may not be able to be killed by wipes (Image: iStockphoto)While she explained we should take care with cleaning after cooking with "at-risk" foods such as chicken, seafood and raw eggs, we needn't fear having a bit of bacteria around the house.
"The point ... is you don’t need to be so fastidious in cleaning your house from top to bottom because you can't actually remove all bacteria and nor would we want to," she continues.
She says that exposure to everyday pathogens is good for keeping our immune system healthy and strong, keeping a sterile home is impossible and antibacterial products are a waste of money.
You don't need to tell us twice...