The last few times we’ve gone grocery shopping I’ve started thinking about how nice it will be when Nate can sit up front in the cart instead of having to lug the car seat into the store. The little dude is getting heavy. I won’t try it until he can sit up on his own, of course.
Since becoming a mom, I’ve become much more aware of “germs”, an outdated term for what the cleaning industry now refers to as bacteria. I wash Nate’s bottles in a plastic basin instead of the kitchen sink. I wipe down surfaces with a green multi-purpose cleanser. I’m eyeballing my floors and dreading the amount of vacuuming and cleaning that is sure to come my way once he becomes mobile. And those shopping cart handles. They’ve got to be pretty gross, right?
Somebody came up with an invention in the time since I was a kid…shopping cart covers. I managed to survive beyond toddlerhood in spite of being placed in a shopping cart without some sort of protective barrier between my skin and the cart. What was my mother thinking?!
I kind of think this kind of thing really isn’t necessary. It’s another piece of baby gear that the baby gear industry wants us to believe we can’t live without. I am all for cleaning hands and wiping things down with an antibacterial wipe, and that’s as far as I plan to go.
It turns out you have all kinds of opinions on the matter!
I hopped onto Twitter and asked: “Are shopping cart covers really necessary? I can’t help but think we are overprotecting our kids from germs…what do you think?”
You answered:
@jugglananda: O, a shopping cart cover. I prefer to drive through the store window with my suv..for max germ protection!
@nicolby: I’m not using anything, maybe a wipe down or something, but really, babies need to be exposed to some germs.
@jugglananda: I use a douvet to cover myself while shopping. Nice colours, warm….better than a robe.
@kittenpie: that’s the joy of parenting – so many different opinions, so you have to go with what feel right to you.
@ErinEPeters: depends on the kid, too. I’m blessed w/very healthy kids, so didn’t take as many precautions. Some need more protection.
@jennscrzy: only time i ever used a cover is when my youngest was too big for an infant carrier but couldn’t sit up- it acted as support
@jennscrzy: i think the covers are pointless- not like our parents had them for us.
@sthrnfairytale: I never used any kind of cover and occasionally used wipes or a spray 
@nicolby: we don’t have a shopping cart cover and don’t plan on getting one.
@kittenpie: yeah, I’m with you. Some exposure helps breed strong kids.
@themaggers: now, that’s not saying they aren’t dirty. What kept us from getting sick all the time back then
@thecaffeinatrix: Hundreds of ppl a week touch those handles, which are never cleaned by stores, plus leaky diapers, leaky meats etc in the seats
@phdinparenting: We never used one. I wore my babies when they were little and after that didn’t worry about it.
@themaggers: we never had that kind of stuff when I was little. No car covers no hand sanitizer no table covers. I was rarely sick
@jenlemen: I agree with u. Overkill. I attribute my travelers stomach of steel to a come what may attitude to germs.
@rotormommy: we don’t use them. I think people are being overly paranoid about germs. plus I just wear Elliot when we are out like that anyway
@beautifulwreck2: Fecal matter has been found on the seats and handles of grocery carts.
@ErinEPeters: I found the covers waaaay too much trouble to put on. Just use an antibacterial wipe on the cart handle and you’re good to go.
@solemom: I think absolutely NOT necessary. Exposure to germs is a good thing – bodies need practice to learn how to fight things off!
@MariaMelee: We used them with S because of the possibility of food more than germs. But those shopping carts are pretty nasty.
@beautifulwreck2: Absolutely we need them. Have you ever seen a show where they tested what was on the grocery cart? Gross.
Honestly, I still don’t plan to use one. I’ll pick up some antibacterial wipes to keep in the car and wipe the cart down before Nate goes in. I can’t protect him from every little germ out there…I really do think that when kids are overprotected they end up getting sick a lot more often.
Mommy! You let me put another kid’s Eeyore in my MOUTH! How COULD you!?
So what do you think?
My three boys are all pretty healthy. I believe you need to eat a certain amount of dirt and come in contact with a germs to build a resistance. I’ve never been one to use anti-bacterial stuff. And knock on wood, we’re no sicker in our house.
I use one most of the time, but not for germs. Mostly, I like it because it cushions the hard surfaces a bit (my daughter tends to chew on EVERYTHING, but then hurts her mouth) and, most of all, keeps the toys/sippy cup better contained. Another nice thing is that it provides a dry seat even if the cart is wet from being out in the rain/snow. And it’s entirely reusable! No trash!
Personally, I hate using anything antibacterial because of the studies that show that our over-use of antibacterial stuff is killing all of the weak germs and only letting the really nasty ones survive.
I fell into the baby gear extravaganza and bought one of those stupid things with my first baby. Have you ever tried putting them on? And forget about highchairs, then you have to wash it every time. Just wipe the handle down because that is most likely where they’ll put their hands and mouth.
When N was a baby and was pretty isolated from the outside world, she got rotavirus, which if you aren’t familiar is one of the most horrible virus’ a person can get. It’s highly contagious and spreads like wildfire, typically from people not washing their hands after using the bathroom or when a little one has a leaky diaper.
Since she was really little and was always in her car seat or stroller, N didn’t come in contact with many contagions on a daily basis so when she came down with the dreaded rotavirus, I asked the doctor where she could have gotten it. The first question he asked was has she been in a shopping cart recently because that and daycare are where kids usually pick it up. And then I remembered that she’d started sitting up so I let her sit in a cart seat about a week prior and she had put her mouth all over the handle, which, while I thought it was gross, I didn’t imagine would cause her much harm (she was extremely ill and almost hospitalized).
After that we used a cart cover (I was able to put it on with one hand so I don’t get why people think it’s so hard) until she was old enough to listen when I told her to NOT put her mouth on stuff. I did the same with my son.
Now that he’s older, I just use the wipes at the store entrance on the seat and handle but when they were babies, after rotavirus (which we ALL got and it was HELL on earth) I felt like it was easier to just throw a cover over the seat and not worry about it.
Most germs will wash away with a standard handwashing but how do you wash that stuff out of your baby’s mouth when you’re in the middle of shopping? You can’t.
Sure kids need exposure to germs and animals and common allergens for their immune systems but you wouldn’t willingly expose them to particularly bad virus’ or bacterias if you knew it would make them really, really sick, right? Trust me, as soon as you start being around other people on a daily basis, they will get all the exposure they need without tempting fate.
(Washing with soaps or cleansers does not kill Rotavirus and thus a barrier is the best option when your kid puts their mouth on everything within reach http://www.dhpe.org/infect/rot.html)
Sorry for the loooong comment. I just wanted to explain that while I’m not a total germ freak, I do think cart covers are a good way to avoid certain illnesses.
Sorry, that link is bad because there is a parenthesis on the end that shouldn’t be a part of the link.
I’m usually super low key about germs. Binky on the floor? Five second rule! The baby licked the dog? Turnabout is fair play! He ate some dirt? Builds immunities! But something about the idea of him chewing on a shopping cart handle grosses me out. I think of it sort of like this — if I took a random selection of a dozen strangers at the store on a typical day, would i let them line up and stick their fingers in the baby’s mouth? Probably not. I don’t like to use antibacterial products too much either, because of the issues with those. We don’t have a cover yet since he’s still little enough to ride in his carseat in the cart basket. I’m still debating between a goofy cover or the wipes for when he gets bigger, but this may be the one Mockable Mom Object I decide to go for.
I was on the who needs em, wipe it down a big and go- kids need some germs anyway. That was, until today; when a big package of beef dripped in my cart without me realizing (it was in the seat part since I don’t have kids yet) and even with 3 purell wipes I had hard time getting it all clean. Most people aren’t even gonna bother cleaning the cart when something spills and I don’t think the moms who say they use wipes are actually doing a very thorough job. At least I know I’d just do a quick wipe. I agree kids need exposure to bacteria but meat blood and salmonella are a bit much for me. I think we forget how much exposure these carts have to a wide range of people and food etc. I mean they’ve been around for years and the most cleaning they get is if they get left in the parking lot in the rain. I’m converted, I’ll be using a cart cover for my kids.
I’m a bit of a germ freak myself, I’ve caught my daughter sucking on the cart in the past (barf). I try to babywear in the store, to avoid putting baby in the cart.
What funny responses!
I don’t have one yet, but I’m considering it. Just because my Mom didn’t use one (as they weren’t around) doesn’t mean she wouldn’t have, if they were available. I still have to look into them, but price will probably be a factor.
I’m mrsbird1129 from the bump!
I totally agree with Amy. Small bits of germs help your imune system to build its defence. Don’t become overprotective
Never used one with either kid and they’ve survived, but Katie gets sick with EVERYTHING, so maybe I should have. LOL.
We didn’t don’t use one. My kids were exposed to germs. Sure I wiped down the handle but a few germs are good for the immune system. Also, I’m lazy and couldn’t imagine trying to carry around one more thing. My kids were in cloth diapers and that made the diaper bag full enough.