I was born to be a germ freak. My mom is a germ freak, and my standards aren’t nearly as high as hers.

When I was in grade school, I remember wetting my pants on the walk home. Mostly, I remember this happening in the winter time because I’d often slosh home in my red golashes. But the sloshing was coming from inside my boots.

I thought that I had some sort of incontinent problem until she finally told me when I was an adult that it was her fault that I used to wet my pants.

She often told me not to use the toilets at school because they were so filthy, and being the extremely obedient little girl that I was, I must have taken her literally. She often saw how little kids don’t know how to go to the bathroom without leaving all kinds of germs around.

Well, neither do adults!

If anyone saw 20/20 two weeks ago, they saw just how dirty bathrooms really are. Allison Janse, who was a guest on the show, wrote a book, “The Germ Freak’s Guide to Outwitting Colds and Flu.�

She wrote to me in response to my last blog, about being a germ freak.

I was enthralled and grossed out reading her book. I’ve always been chastised by friends and co-workers for being a germ freak, but now I have scientific backing for my paranoia.

Reading Janse’s book allowed me to come out of the germ closet with built-in support validating my phobia for germs. Alison, along with co-author Charles Gerba, showed 20/20 how dirty bathrooms really are.

Not surprisingly, the floors were by far the dirtiest, with 200 million bacteria per square inch. This is 200 times higher than a sanitary surface.

You may think, “so what if the floor is dirty, that doesn’t affect me.�

Well, if you’ve ever had to put your purse or bags on the floor it affects you. The dynamic germ duo found fecal matter on the bottom of a woman’s purse. Makes you think twice before you lay your purse on the kitchen table, doesn’t it?

They also observed how many people properly wash their hands at a movie theater – a lowly 16%! So guess where a lot of the germs and particles are: the door handles, for one. How about that popcorn someone offers you?

I’ve often witnessed women leave bathrooms without washing their hands, or simply running a few drops of water on them – just enough to make the germs and stuff really spreadable.

I recall a co-worker doing the two-second rinse and then getting in front of me during an office lunch. She felt compelled to touch all the various cold-cuts before settling on just cheese. Needless to say, I skipped lunch.

People, including me, aren’t conscious about how much we spread germs. Yes, it’s a personal decision whether or not you’re going to eat a sandwich without washing your hands after using the toilet.

Here’s the thing – you probably touched 15 different surfaces from the time you left the bathroom to the time you sat down at your desk, which makes it a public issue.

We all need to learn how to talk to each other about stuff like this rather than suffer in silence.

My partner had a meeting with a man recently, who was visibly sick. He tried not to spread germs by covering his mouth with his hands – both of them — when he coughed and sneezed.

At the end of the meeting, he stuck out his hand to my partner and even though he knew what was there, he succumbed to social pressure and shook his hand anyway. He immediately went straight to the bathroom to wash his hands.

Janse recommends that we dodge handshakes by saying “I’d shake your hand but I just had a serious sinus infection and don’t want you to bring it home to your family.�

This is from a woman who’s been known to chase down a man after he open-faced sneezed in her two-year-old daughter’s face. She chased him down to make him aware that his “public displays of infection� were not appreciated. Yay for her!

I’m not nearly as bold as she is. For now, I’ll give subtle hints to my high standards of keeping one’s germs to oneself by keeping a copy of Janse’s book on my desk in plain view.

For all you fellow germ freaks out there, I highly recommend “The Germ Freak’s Guide to Outwitting the Cold and Flu.�

After you get over not wanting to leave the sanitary sanctuary of your own home, you’ll appreciate picking up new tricks to staying healthy all year ‘round.

Erin Yoshimura, Chief Empowerment Officer of Empowerful Changesâ„¢, specializes in Emotional Intelligence training and life coaching.