History Main / TerrifiedOfGerms

-->--'''WeirdAlYankovic''', ''Germs''

* Edd from ''{{Ed, Edd, and Eddy}}''. He put on plastic gloves AND a surgeon's mask when taking care of a sick Sarah. And when he caught her cold anyway, he claimed that bacteria strike the instant one's guard is down. Germs were also his first complaint when forced into a bathroom vent.

* Bob from ''WhatAboutBob?'' is afraid of germs, among many other things. He stays in his apartment as much as possible, and uses tissues to avoid actually touching things. He gets better over the course of the film.

* Mayor Richard Wilkins of Sunnydale, in ''BuffyTheVampireSlayer.''

* Edd from {{Ed, Edd, and Eddy}}. He put on plastic gloves AND a surgeon's mask when taking care of a sick Sarah. And when he caught her cold anyway, he claimed that bacteria strike the instant one's guard is down. Germs were also his first complaint when forced into a bathroom vent.

* Adrian {{Monk}}, with the curious exception of blood.

* ''Literature/TheCavesOfSteel'': The Spacers (former Earth colonists living in Utopian conditions throughout Space) have long eliminated all disease in their worlds, but their immune systems decayed as a result (the common cold can kill them), so they are downright paranoid when dealing with normal Earth people (who live in entirely different conditions)--forcing them to take thorough showers and burning all materials they come in contact with.

* ''TheCavesOfSteel'': The Spacers (former Earth colonists living in Utopian conditions throughout Space) have long eliminated all disease in their worlds, but their immune systems decayed as a result (the common cold can kill them), so they are downright paranoid when dealing with normal Earth people (who live in entirely different conditions)--forcing them to take thorough showers and burning all materials they come in contact with.

* The appropriately-named henchman "Germs" in the ''Batman:TheAnimatedSeries'' two-parter ''Feat of Clay.'' He opens doors using a handkerchief and is visibly squicked at going to a hospital.

This goes well beyond simple fear. Realistic examples might refuse to touch anything that hasn't been extensively washed while more over the top versions can go so far as to fear the germs are conspiring to make them sick (though research has shown they ''can'' [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quorum_sensing conspire to wait until there are enough of them to overwhelm the immune system]], and may even be capable of [[http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0889159109001962 messing with your head in other ways]], so some characters may actually be ProperlyParanoid).

This goes well beyond simple fear. Realistic examples might refuse to touch anything that hasn't been extensively washed while more over the top versions can go so far as to fear the germs are conspiring to make them sick.

* ''TheCavesOfSteel'': The Spacers (former Earth colonists living in utopian conditions throughout Space) have long eliminated all disease in their worlds, but their immune systems decayed as a result (the common cold can kill them), so they are downright paranoid when dealing with normal Earth people (who live in entirely different conditions)--forcing them to take thorough showers and burning all materials they come in contact with.

* Adrian {{Monk}} with the curious exception of blood.

* The Quarians of the ''MassEffect'' games are an [[PlanetOfHats entire race of these]] - justified because their immune systems are so weak that they must wear specially designed enviro-suits all the time and take vaccines and immuno-boosters to ward off disease. Even in clean environments, they prefer the safety of their suits, and are reluctant to remove them without a good reason. It is a gesture of trust and intimacy amongst Quarians to hook one's own suit environment to another's, even though doing so can make both of them very sick.

* Spotless [=McPartland=], in Dick Cavalli's ''Winthrop''.

* [[QuestionableContent Hannelore Ellicott-Chatham]]. This seems to be the core of her OCD.

* Gus on {{Disney}}'s {{Recess}} developed this phobia in one episode, and eventually attempted to have the whole playground sanitized.

->''They're all over me, They're inside of me, Can't get 'em offa me, I'm covered with ... microscopic bacteria. What do they want from me? What'll they do to me? There's no escape for me, I'm crawling with ... microscopic bacteria''

* A character often developes this for one episode in order to deliver an aesop about taking risks being a neccisary part of life.

* The quarians of the ''MassEffect'' games are an entire race of these - justified because their immune systems are so weak that they must wear specially designed enviro-suits all the time and take vaccines and immuno-boosters to ward off disease. Even in clean environments, they prefer the safety of their suits, and are reluctant to remove them without a good reason. It is a gesture of trust and intimacy amongst quarians to hook one's own suit environment to another's, even though doing so can make both of them very sick.

* The Quarians of the ''MassEffect'' games are an entire race of these - justified because their immune systems are so weak that they must wear specially designed enviro-suits all the time and take vaccines and immuno-boosters to ward off disease. Even in clean environments, they prefer the safety of their suits, and are reluctant to remove them without a good reason. It is a gesture of trust and intimacy amongst Quarians to hook one's own suit environment to another's, even though doing so can make both of them very sick.