We've all been there. We are face to face with a public toilet and the only thing that is saving us, is a sheet of paper to cover the nasty seat. But what happens if you don't use a seat cover? According to Kelly Reynolds, a public health researcher at the University of Arizona, since toilet seat covers and toilet paper are absorbent, they have relatively large holes that will not stop tiny bacteria and viruses from passing through. But don't worry too much. The risk of germ transmission from your skin touching a toilet seat is unlikely in the first place.