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Can I catch Hiv or any std from this?
"A couple weeks ago I was in target and used the restroom. They had no toilet
paper and I happen to look in the thing that you put tampons and pads in and
there was some toilet paper left in there. It was dry had nothing on it and
looked clean and smelt like toilet paper. I used it and wasn't really thinking
about that I could catch something from using it. Now I am very scared. I feel
completely fine and nothing is different about me. I looked all over on the
internet and everyone has said that if there was any kind of std including hiv
that the virus would have died because of the air plus drying out. Is this true? I know this was stupid but I was in a hurry and wan't thinking.
Please I would love some help on this. Thank you for your time
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Want to answer more questions in the Sexual Health and Reproduction category?
Maybe give some free advice about: STD Information?
Viruses are not killed by air. It may dry them up, but the germs and bacteria remain. Chances are slim that you would catch HIV from this, but it is not a good practice to use TP found amongst nasty used feminine hygiene products. They are growing bacteria just sitting in that environment.
The air actually spreads a lot of viruses.
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Just for clarification purposes, HIV would not cause you to feel anything in the first few weeks, months, possibly even years of infection, the same with some other STDs. That being said, I think you'll be fine.
Viruses, thanks to their only having, at most, a single protein coating, do not survive well in the open environment. Bacteria, however, can survive for lengthy periods of time outside of the body and on surfaces such as toilet paper. However, bacterial infections generally manifest themselves quickly (within a week or two of contamination). Also, the odds of someone having any kind of viral STD and leaving such contamination in the trash can are very low. The odds of someone with a bacterial infection doing the same are very low. The odds of catching an infection from what you've done are even lower. If anything, you could possibly experience a bacterial infection. I think you would not, but I can't be certain. The good news is that if it WERE to happen (again, I think not), then it would be treatable and most likely not affect you very much more than a trip to the doctor and a small prescription antibiotic treatment. Just to make sure you're not still worried, it's extremely unlikely.
However, here's hoping that you washed your hands because that's just unhealthy if you didn't. Also, do never use toilet paper out of a trashcan. It's just not a good idea because, though those possibilities are VERY low, they aren't 0%.
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