Can Someone Contract STIs From A Toilet Seat?

Walking into a public bathroom, or any bathroom for that matter, is not always a pretty sight. According to Medicinenet, while it’s true that viruses, bacteria, and parasites can live on toilets, it’s highly unlikely you will catch a sexually transmitted disease from a toilet seat.

STIs are spread through unprotected intimacy, genital contact and sharing toys. STIs cannot survive for long outside the human body, so they generally die quickly on surfaces like toilet seats. Some viral and parasitic STIs can live outside of your body for a limited period of time. Theoretically, they may be transmitted from contact with a toilet seat. But this form of transmission is rare.

Most of the organisms that cause STIs can’t survive for long outside of the human body, but there is one you can theoretically catch from a toilet seat: trichomoniasis. While trichomoniasis is usually passed through intimacy, it may be picked up from contact with damp or moist objects such as towels, wet clothing, or a toilet seat, if the genital area gets in contact with these damp or moist objects.