Tread cautiously, cubicle-bound office drones. It’s a jungle out there. Or, at the very least, a buffet for bacteria. That’s the word from public health advocates and microbiologists, as well as from consumer-product marketers that want to sell you an arsenal of defense weaponry.

For the casual neat freak, there are a variety of disinfecting wipes and sprays available in most grocery and convenience stores. For the hardcore Howard Hughes in you, there are rubber and washable keyboards, antimicrobial paper and special coatings for telephones.

Then again, it might be just as simple as washing your hands regularly and practicing proper office etiquette when it comes to snacking, sneezing and coughing.

“These are the basic things our mothers taught us,” said Mary Bertin, a registered nurse.

“I’m not impressed with all of this antimicrobial everything. I think it’s taken away from the tenets of good hand-hygiene.”

Perhaps, as advertised, such products really do kill 99.9 percent of bacteria and prevent the spread of cold, flu and other infectious disease. But they cost much more than traditional soap and water that Michelle Lisgaris, an infectious disease doctor with University Hospital Case Medical Center, said “is still the No. 1 way to go” when combating germs at the office.

Others think the basics sometimes aren’t enough.

Since 2002, University of Arizona microbiologist Charles Gerba, a celebrity of sorts in his field who is known as Dr. Germ, has helped Clorox Co. with a survey on germs in the workplace. Each year, Gerba and his team look for different trends, and the results never fail to alarm.

In the study’s first year, Gerba concluded that in the office, a person’s desk had 400 times more bacteria than a toilet seat. Of course, Clorox, synonymous with bleach and other cleaning solutions, was quick to throw in a plug for its disinfecting wipes.

Over the years, the study has shown that people’s habits have improved – that people and offices are cleaner than they were in 2002 – but danger still lurks. Gerba’s latest study showed mold present on several surfaces – mostly the bottoms of desk drawers.

“As people spend more time at their desks, germs find plenty to snack on,” Gerba said in the most recent report, which Clorox released in February. “They’re breakfast buffets, lunch tables and snack bars as we spend more and more hours at the office.”

With such a diagnosis, it is not surprising that Freedonia Group Inc., a Mayfield, Ohio, market research firm, projects the disinfectant and antimicrobial chemicals industry will grow 5 percent each year through 2009, when it will reach $930 million.

The big players include household brand names such as Clorox and Lysol, but also Northeast Ohio companies such as Akron’s Gojo Industries Inc. and Steris Corp. of Mentor.

Gojo’s product line of skin-care products includes Purell hand sanitizer. One company slogan asks and answers its own question: “Why don’t we just wash? Because soap and water are in the restroom. We’re busy at our desks … where the germs are.”

Steris, which supplies hospitals and nursing homes, has its own line of products, including a hand-hygiene kit available direct to consumers online (www.steris.com) for about $50.

Other companies, such as AgIon Technologies Inc. of Wakefield, Mass., and Domtar Inc. of Montreal, focus on safeguarding industrial and everyday products.

AgIon makes a silver-based compound that inhibits the growth of bacteria, fungus and mold. It is used in products ranging from medical devices to sportswear.

More relevant to the workplace, in January, Domtar released what it markets as the first antimicrobial office paper in North America. The paper is treated with a silver compound that is designed to protect it from attracting mold, mildew and the smells that come with them.

But doctors warn there is a downside to this antimicrobial madness.

UH’s Lisgaris said that with so many products flooding the marketplace, “there is a lot of concern that bacteria can become resistant to the antimicrobial treatments available.”

Bertin, the Clinic’s infection control practitioner, agreed.

“We don’t need antimicrobial everything,” she said. “If these products work – even if they prevent the growth of organisms – the surfaces still initially become inhabited.

“It’s all nonsense in my opinion.”

Freedonia Group Inc., a Mayfield, Ohio market research firm, projects the disinfectant and antimicrobial chemicals industry will grow 5 percent each year and reach $930 million in 2009. Some products behind that growth:

Disinfecting wipes

Clorox, Lysol and others market these widely available wipes in all scents and sizes. For less than $10, one of the cheaper ways to feel clean (traditional soap and water notwithstanding).

Hand sanitizer

These lotions are everywhere as one of the most popular alternatives to soap. Purell, a brand from Akron’s Gojo Industries, is widely available in stores. Mentor’s Steris Corp. offers a hand-hygiene kit online for about $50. It includes rubs, washes and wipes.

Rubber keyboards

A washable product with appeal for the messy coffee-spillers and the hardcore germaphobes. Depending on brand and features, you can pay anywhere from $20 to more than $200.

Paper

In January, Domtar Inc. of Montreal released what it markets as North America’s first antimicrobial office paper. Paper inhibits growth of bacterial odors, mold, mildew and fungus. Retains antimicrobial properties throughout its shelf-life. Has selected its first distributor, Gould Paper Corp. of New York City. Availability and prices unknown.

Pens

AgIon Technologies Inc. of Wakefield, Mass., makes a silver-based compound that inhibits the growth of bacteria, fungus and mold. The compound is used on several high-end lines of PaperMate ballpoint pens with antimicrobial grips. Available online and through traditional office retail channels. But be prepared to pay at least $10 for a single pen.