We've all used public restrooms that offer toilet seat liners for the toilet seat. These could be single paper style liners you pull out of a dispenser and place on the toilet seat or automatic plastic wrap that rotates and puts a clean liner on the seat each time the toilet is flushed.
I'm assuming that most of us choose to use the toilet seat liner if it's an option. It's more hygienic, right? Actually, no. Assuming the toilet seat is clean and not covered in human waste, sitting on a bare toilet seat is likely just as hygienic as sitting on a lined seat. STD viruses such as HIV and herpes survive for only a very short time once exposed. Even if someone has recently used the seat and there is no liner, your skin is an excellent defender of transferring disease. E.coli may be a concern, but assuming you wash your hands (please tell me you wash your hands!!!) there is little to no concern.
Using a liner on the toilet is probably useless
Although a toilet seat cover may prove to benefit a select portion of the population who have sensitive skin or open sores, most of us are only receiving a psychological benefit. Will I continue using toilet seat covers if they are an option? Yes. Will it really do anything? No, but I'll still use them because in some way it seems wrong to not use one when available. :-)
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