Recent study showed that touching household gadgets such as bathroom taps, refrigerator doors and doorknobs can cause a cold infection. Research team from Virginia University found that cold virus, also called rhinovirus can survive on household surfaces for up to two days, and these infected surfaces can transfer the virus and cause a cold infection.

Researchers tested ten sites in the homes of 30 people suffering from common cold. 42 percent of the surfaces in the homes studied showed rhinovirus traces.

The nasal secretions of the volunteers were also tested for the rhinovirus virus. The DNA tests came out positive for rhinovirus infection in 16 subjects. The study showed that rhinovirus genetic material was still present on the fingertips of more than half the volunteers 48 hours after the surfaces were contaminated.

Lead researcher, Dr. Birgit Winther said: "Some people still spray the air with disinfectants, but rhinovirus doesn't fly through the air. I think that the message from this research is that we need to focus more wisely on cleaning commonly touched surfaces in the home."