In a study, phones were found to be contaminated with 12 bacteria after being swabbed and tested. PHOTO | ED JONES | AFP
Dirty money and mobile phones pose a great risk to your health, researchers have warned.
Money,
especially low denomination currencies, the scientists say, is causing
more diarrhoeal diseases among Kenyans who are being exposed to food
borne germs in hotels and other food joints.
FOOD HANDLERS
The
study was carried out among 395 food handlers in 15 different types of
outlets in Kenya's Nairobi County, by Jomo Kenyatta University of
Agriculture and Technology (JKUAT), Kenya Medical Research Institute
(Kemri), and US Army Medical Research Unit — Kenya.
It shows that because they are rarely cleaned, money and mobile phones act as reservoirs of germs that cause food poisoning.
Having
tested money in all denominations from Sh1 coins to Sh1,000 notes in
circulation within Nairobi, the report revealed that among coins, Sh5,
Sh10 and Sh20 were dirtiest, followed by Sh50, Sh100 and Sh200 notes.
“Most of the money denominations and phones
were contaminated with pathogenic micro-organisms,” the study findings
presented at the 7th East African Health and Scientific Conference held
in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, in March states.
Worse
still, food handlers, especially waiters and cooks, do not observe
hygiene after answering their phones. At the time of the survey, 34 of
the participants were found to be sick, having been diagnosed with
coughs, pneumonia and inflammation of the stomach and intestines
(gastroenteritis).
These diseases not
only cause a problem to the patients, but they are prone to being
transferred to the food being handled by the sick waiter or cook.
In
addition, more than 60 per cent did not wash hands after touching money
or using their phones. Normally, food handlers should not be the same
people handling money.
“Food handlers
and the general public should be sensitised on the risks involved in
handling food after touching money and cell phones,” warns the study.
SKIN INFECTIONS
In
2009, Kemri did a similar study in Nairobi and found money
highly-contaminated with faecal organisms. Most contaminated were coins
collected from butchers, followed closely by roadside maize roasters and
food kiosks.
According to Dr Richard
Korir, a research officer at Kemri’s Centre for Microbiology Research
and corresponding author of the study, lack of adherence to hand washing
and sanitation hygiene is leading to transfer of these germs into the
food served to oblivious consumers.
The
study was conducted and submitted by a master’s student at JKUAT who
looked at different bacteria found in the environment, foods,
intestines, and skin of both people and animals.
Although
most strains of these bacteria are harmless, others can cause diseases
such as typhoid, dysentery, food poisoning, and skin infections.
“Sh1,000
is the least contaminated because it is the least used, while the Sh1
coin is also less dirty as its value has depreciated and therefore less
used,” noted Dr Korir.
The most
prevalent micro-organism found in all the denominations was
staphylococcus species, known to cause skin, heart and bone infections,
food poisoning, pneumonia and toxic shock in humans.
Also
found in the money was Escherichia coli (E. coli), bacteria found in
the environment, foods, and intestines of people and animals. Most
strains are harmless, but others can make you sick.
Interestingly, Dr Korir said, compared to money, phones are worse.
“Many
people do not perceive phones as dirty or sources of contamination, and
therefore, almost never observe hand hygiene after using them,” he
said.
The phones were found to be
contaminated with 12 bacteria after being swabbed and tested, with the
most prevalent, Staphylococcus, which is commonly found on skin and
hair.
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