But after the scariest shower news since Alfred Hitchcock's "Psycho," I'm considering replacing our showerheads following the report that they can harbor dangerous bacteria that gets sprayed into the air. It sounds disgusting. Fortunately, people with normal immune systems most likely aren't at risk. Still, it makes you look at your showerhead a little differently, doesn't it?

Yeah, I know. I'm a little paranoid.

Not a weirdo germ freak. Germs are everywhere. Besides, a little hand sanitizer goes a long way. And even if it didn't, you can't live your life in a plastic bubble worrying about "what if."

But for those of us who pay attention to such things, it seems as if every day there's a new warning - the coming flu season and the H1N1 virus is the current big one.

Until yesterday, when I heard on Fox 29 that women need to re-evaluate their choices in handbags.

Yeah, that's right, their purses.

It turns out that many inexpensive handbags and wallets made of fake leather contain disturbingly high levels of lead. The warnings were based on a report by the Center for Environmental Health, which purchased faux leather products at California retailers earlier this year and screened them for lead.

Get this: The name of the report was "Pretty but Poisonous: Lead in Handbags and Wallets." The center's findings were startling: After testing handbags from major retailers such as Macy's, Forever 21, Kohl's, Target, JC Penney and Sears, researchers found a good number of them tested positive for lead. When I looked at some of the problematic pocketbooks, I spotted a gold one with a shoulder strap that I'd started to buy my 12-year-old niece to match her Easter outfit.

"We found that probably bright yellows, greens, oranges and things that have yellow tints are most likely to have lead and we found lead in other colors as well," Charles Margulis, a center spokesman told me. "If you are going to keep the purse, keep it away from kids. And wash your hands after using it. Don't keep food in it. And if you do, make sure it's well-wrapped."

Last summer, the group filed a lawsuit saying in part, "The businesses are in violation of the voter-passed Proposition 65, the Safe Drinking Water and Toxic Enforcement Act of 1986, because they failed to warn shoppers, particularly pregnant women who are most at risk from exposure."

The center's findings are a little late for those of us who've spent the last couple of summers toting around brightly colored clutches and shoulder bags. In lieu of their being a big "it bag" of the season, the trend has been to go with a pocketbook in a bright color.

The center says women should stick to basic black bags and to carry either genuine leather or canvas. Ah, yes, at least we can do that. Who doesn't have a black bag stuffed in her closet?

As for the showerheads, most healthy people don't have to worry about that, and those with compromised immune systems can always take baths. And here's more good news: U.S. health officials have approved vaccines from four drug makers to help prevent the H1N1 or swine flu. So, there'll be enough to go around - not that I'm worried.

But better to be safe than sorry.

Send e-mail to heyjen@phillynews.com. My blog: http://go.philly.com/heyjen.