7 Nasty Bathroom Items You Should Throw Out Now

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Your bathroom is a sacred place. It's also a very dirty place, with lots of tools and implements that are covered with grime, but also really easy and cheap to replace. Look around and find these seven nasty bathroom items you should throw out now.

1. Toothbrush Holder (And Your Toothbrush!)

Odds are you haven't changed your toothbrush in more than the recommended three to four months, which is bad enough. But odds are you're even worse at cleaning or replacing the toothbrush holder! The kind that acts as a cup with holes on top are the grossest off all — they trap moldy water inside, letting bacteria festoon below.

2. Loofa Sponge

We use our loofahs for too long. You're cleaning your own dirty body with them, so of course they get filthy from soap scum, dead skin cells, and bacteria. Tip: have a newish sponge you want to keep a little longer? Lightly dampen the sponge and nuke it in the microwave for three to four minutes on high. It'll feel a little crispy to the touch for a bit, but it will have killed much of the burgeoning bacteria.

3. Bath Toys

Yes, those rubber duckies and squeezable action figures eventually will attract lots of black mold. And the little hole on the bottom of the toy? That means there is even more mold and mildew on the inside. Be sure to give your kids' bath toys a long disinfecting soak every week, and when they get those little black specs, just toss them and replace with new ones.

4. Shower Curtain Liner

It's easy to ignore the nasty, slimy film and the black mold forming around the bottom of your shower curtain liner. It's pretty simple: to go your local Bed Bath and Beyond or Target and grab a replacement! Add it to your rotating shopping list. Your life will be better (and cleaner) with a new one.

5. Disposable Razor

We all try to stretch the last disposable razor as long as we can. At this point, the razer is full of flecks of dead hair, mounds of dead skin cells, and bacteria. Even if you clean it up, why keep it? It's too dull to give you a close shave, so throw it away.

6. Toilet Brush

It's an item we'd all rather not think about, right? It's a gross implement used to swipe away at an even grosser fixture. Well, chances are you're not soaking your brush every month to kill extra bacteria and possible odors. And, since toilet brushes are fairly cheap, shoot for throwing yours away every year to avoid a case of the shudders next time you need to use it.

7. Bath Mat

This workhorse is full of filthy secrets. If yours is machine washable, make sure you're washing it every month. If it's not, toss it and get one that is. You'll thank yourself next time you drop a contact lens on the floor.

What old grimey thing will you toss out next?