How long do germs live on plastic bottles and/or caps. i am mostly concerned with herpes, meningitis, other gross or dangerous germs. my toddler put a random water bottle from the ground in her mouth and i am so upset. should i be as worried as i am?

Finger to mouth activity is common to all toddlers, including putting bugs, foreign objects, screws, bottle caps and everything else they can fine in their environment. A Children's Hospital infectious disease specialist estimates they have about 100 different germ challenges/day. They all seem to grow up/survive/rarely do they get these bad diseases. Fear if you must, but you can't control this

Agree with Dr. Ferguson. Exposure to dirt and associated bugs is a normal part of growing up and according to some better than an environment that is too clean. Visit this site for info: https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/childhood-asthma/expert-answers/hygiene-hypothesis/faq-20058102#:~:text=The%20hygiene%20hypothesis%20proposes%20that,immune%20system%20not%20to%20overreact.