WASHINGTON (AP) Sorry, clean freaks. No matter how well you scrub your home, it's covered in bacteria from your own body. And if you pack up and move, new research shows, you'll rapidly transfer your unique microbial fingerprint to the doorknobs, countertops and floors in your new house, too.

In fact, researchers who studied seven families in Illinois, Washington and California could easily match up who lived where using their microscopic roommates, almost like CSI for germs.

Thursday's study is part of an effort to understand how the trillions of mostly beneficial bacteria that live in and on our bodies what's called the human microbiome interact with bugs in the environment to affect our health.

"We have so little information about where the microbes come from that shape our microbiome, whether it's for health or disease," said microbiologist Jack Gilbert of the Argonne National Laboratory and University of Chicago.

Where do people spend most of their time? "It's the indoor environment. The best place to look at that was the home," said Gilbert, who led the Home Microbiome Project and included his own family.

Right at birth, babies start picking up microbes on the skin, in the nose, in the gut that eventually make up living communities that will share their bodies throughout life. Many of these bugs play critical roles in digestion, the immune system and other health-inducing factors. Others may make it easier to gain weight, or influence disease. What shapes the balance of good bugs and bad is a huge scientific question.

Hospital studies make clear that someone who already is sick can catch a new infection from pathogenic bacteria left behind by a previous patient.

In contrast, the new study examines healthy people, and it marks an important step: Beginning to show what's normal in a regular home, said Dr. Lisa Helbling Chadwick of the National Institutes of Health. That's a key question before scientists can explore how to possibly create healthier homes.

"You have to think about the microbiome of your home as part of your home's immune system," said Chadwick, of NIH's National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, who wasn't involved with Gilbert's project. "Instead of relying on killing bugs to stop the spread of infection, maybe we need to cultivate better bugs."

For the study, Gilbert recruited seven households that included 15 adults, three children, three dogs and a cat. For six weeks, participants collected samples of the microscopic bugs living on and around them by swabbing the hands, feet, noses and paws of everyone in the household, plus doorknobs, light switches, floors and countertops.

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OK, so we have germs. But they're our unique germs

WASHINGTON - Sorry, clean freaks. No matter how well you scrub your home, it's covered in bacteria from your own body. And if you pack up and move, new research shows, you'll rapidly transfer your unique microbial fingerprint to the doorknobs, countertops and floors in your new house, too.

In fact, researchers who studied seven families in Illinois, Washington and California could easily match up who lived where using their microscopic roommates, almost like CSI for germs.

Thursday's study is part of an effort to understand how the trillions of mostly beneficial bacteria that live in and on our bodies what's called the human microbiome interact with bugs in the environment to affect our health.

"We have so little information about where the microbes come from that shape our microbiome, whether it's for health or disease," said microbiologist Jack Gilbert of the Argonne National Laboratory and University of Chicago.

Where do people spend most of their time? "It's the indoor environment. The best place to look at that was the home," said Gilbert, who led the Home Microbiome Project and included his own family.

Right at birth, babies start picking up microbes on the skin, in the nose, in the gut that eventually make up living communities that will share their bodies throughout life. Many of these bugs play critical roles in digestion, the immune system and other health-inducing factors. Others may make it easier to gain weight, or influence disease. What shapes the balance of good bugs and bad is a huge scientific question.

Hospital studies make clear that someone who already is sick can catch a new infection from pathogenic bacteria left behind by a previous patient.

In contrast, the new study examines healthy people, and it marks an important step: Beginning to show what's normal in a regular home, said Dr. Lisa Helbling Chadwick of the National Institutes of Health. That's a key question before scientists can explore how to possibly create healthier homes.

"You have to think about the microbiome of your home as part of your home's immune system," said Chadwick, of NIH's National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, who wasn't involved with Gilbert's project. "Instead of relying on killing bugs to stop the spread of infection, maybe we need to cultivate better bugs."

For the study, Gilbert recruited seven households that included 15 adults, three children, three dogs and a cat. For six weeks, participants collected samples of the microscopic bugs living on and around them by swabbing the hands, feet, noses and paws of everyone in the household, plus doorknobs, light switches, floors and countertops.

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Rub-a-dub-dub, no matter how much you scrub, your home is covered in your unique germs

Know where do bacteria reign? In the cosiness of your home - at doorknobs, light switches, floors, countertops - and within relationships.

If you are married and have kids, you tend to share most of the microbial community, says a fascinating research.

And if you have pets, it changes the bacterial makeup with more plant and soil bacteria entering the house.

"As people spend more and more time indoors, we wanted to map out the microbes that live in our homes and the likelihood that they will settle on us," said microbiologist Jack Gilbert from US Department of Energy's Argonne National Laboratory.

As part of the Home Microbiome Project, researchers followed seven families, which included 18 people, three dogs and one cat, over the course of six weeks.

The participants swabbed their hands, feet and noses daily to collect a sample of the microbial populations living in and on them.

They also sampled surfaces in the house, including doorknobs, light switches, floors and countertops.

"We found that people substantially affected the microbial communities in a house - when three of the families moved, it took less than a day for the new house to look just like the old one, microbially speaking," Gilbert explained.

In one home where two of the three occupants were in a relationship with one another, the couple shared many more microbes.

Married couples and their young children also shared most of their microbial community.

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Beware! Married couple share most bacteria

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WASHINGTON -- Sorry, clean freaks. No matter how well you scrub your home, it's covered in bacteria from your own body. And if you pack up and move, new research shows, you'll rapidly transfer your unique microbial fingerprint to the doorknobs, countertops and floors in your new house, too.

In fact, researchers who studied seven families in Illinois, Washington and California could easily match up who lived where using their microscopic roommates, almost like CSI for germs.

Thursday's study is part of an effort to understand how the trillions of mostly beneficial bacteria that live in and on our bodies -- what's called the human microbiome -- interact with bugs in the environment to affect our health.

"We have so little information about where the microbes come from that shape our microbiome, whether it's for health or disease," said microbiologist Jack Gilbert of the Argonne National Laboratory and University of Chicago.

Where do people spend most of their time? "It's the indoor environment. The best place to look at that was the home," said Gilbert, who led the Home Microbiome Project and included his own family.

Right at birth, babies start picking up microbes on the skin, in the nose and in the gut that eventually make up living communities that will share their bodies throughout life. Many of these bugs play critical roles in digestion, the immune system and other health-inducing factors. Others may make it easier to gain weight or influence disease. What shapes the balance of good bugs and bad is a huge scientific question.

Hospital studies make it clear that someone who already is sick can catch a new infection from pathogenic bacteria left behind by a previous patient.

In contrast, the new study examines healthy people, and it marks an important step: beginning to show what's normal in a regular home, said Dr. Lisa Helbling Chadwick of the National Institutes of Health. That's a key question before scientists can explore how to possibly create healthier homes.

"You have to think about the microbiome of your home as part of your home's immune system," said Chadwick of NIH's National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, who wasn't involved with Gilbert's project. "Instead of relying on killing bugs to stop the spread of infection, maybe we need to cultivate better bugs."

For the study, Gilbert recruited seven households that included 15 adults, three children, three dogs and a cat. For six weeks, participants collected samples of the microscopic bugs living on and around them by swabbing the hands, feet, noses and paws of everyone in the household, plus doorknobs, light switches, floors and countertops.

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Study: Just like Pigpen, we travel with our own germs

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Move over granite theres a new favorite in town. Quartz is quickly taking the top spot for kitchens, baths, laundry rooms countertops and even fireplace surrounds. One of the hardest surfaces on earth, quartz countertops withstand the bumps and bangs of dishes, pots, and pans, as well as resists scratches, stains and spills.

1. What are quartz countertops made of?

Unlike natural stone slabs, most quartz countertops are engineered. Theyre made from a primary ingredient of ground natural quartz thats combined with polymer resins to bind it. The end result is an amazingly durable surface that offers color and design flexibility.

2. Quartz versus granite: Which performs better?

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Engineered quartz is inherently nonporous, making it resistant to stains and scratches. How does 99.9 percent bacteria free sound? Thats another bonus to being nonporous. The resin content of engineered quartz makes it impact resistant as well. Granite, a natural stone, will crack under pressure if faced with a hard blow.

3. What kind of design options are there for quartz?

Whether your kitchen style is traditional, modern or eclectic theres a quartz color to suit every project. By adding pigments to the quartz and resin mix, manufacturers can offer a dazzling array of color and texture options that would otherwise be impossible with 100 percent natural stone. For added visual pop, some products also contain small amounts of recycled glass or metallic flecks.

4. Where is quartz best used?

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5 Common Questions About Quartz Countertops Answered

By Tony Burchyns

tburchyns@timesheraldonline.com @tonyburchyns on Twitter

As federal, state and local officials Wednesday continued to assess the damage from Sunday's earthquake, Chip Carter of North Bay Cabinets & Countertops in Vallejo found a way to laugh about his shattered store windows.

Though Carter has had to board up broken windows that he said will cost thousands of dollars to replace, the Vallejo resident has added humor to his plywood situation with hand-painted slogans such as "Voted Best Boarded Up Showroom", "Come In, Buy Something or Donate" and "Come in, Not Covered by Insurance".

"This is a bad time, all this stuff is damaged, so I might has well have fun with this stuff," Carter said Wednesday, adding he expected it would take him months to make repairs to his business at 1515 Solano Ave. "What's there to laugh about nowadays? We're all in trouble from that quake. So let's have some fun."

Part of the reason for his creativity was to ward off graffiti, he said. But he also wanted to use humor to draw attention to his store, which remains open for business.

"I was thinking, 'I ought to do something with the plywood because pretty soon it is going to get graffitied," Carter said. "Everyone's found it funny and what that does is bring in customers."

Meanwhile, Federal Emergency Management Agency personnel accompanied state and local officials Wednesday in inspecting buildings and infrastructure in Vallejo. FEMA is still in the process of determining whether to declare a federal emergency in Napa and Solano counties following Sunday's 6.0-magnitude earthquake the largest to hit the Bay Area in 25 years. On Tuesday, the Solano County Board of Supervisors and the Vallejo City Council officially confirmed their states of emergency.

As of Wednesday afternoon, 155 buildings in Vallejo had been yellow-tagged for partial use, city officials said. Eleven have been red-tagged as unsafe to occupy. Also, about 10 Mare Island businesses still hadn't yet returned to full operations.

On Mare Island, crews continued demolishing quake-damaged chimneys on historic officers' mansions on Walnut Avenue. Mare Island developer Lennar Mare Island, which owns the homes, has pledged to work with the city to address future plans for fixing the damaged structures.

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Quake-damaged Vallejo store gets creative