E. coli found on 50 percent of 36 tested shopping carts - Polidicks

[quote=MSN]Every day, parents blithely drop their toddlers into the baskets of shopping carts, never giving a moment’s thought to who might have had their hands on the handle last. Preliminary results from a new study show that may be a mistake. Researchers from the University of Arizona swabbed shopping cart handles in four states looking for bacterial contamination. [b]Of the 85 carts examined, 72 percent turned out to have a marker for [i]fecal[/i] bacteria.[/b] The researchers took a closer look at the samples from [b]36 carts and discovered Escherichia coli, more commonly known as E. coli, on 50 percent of them[/b] — along with a host of other types of bacteria. “That’s more than you find in a supermarket’s restroom,” said Charles Gerba, the lead researcher on the study and a professor of microbiology at the University of Arizona. “That’s because they use disinfecting cleaners in the restrooms. Nobody routinely cleans and disinfects shopping carts.” The study’s results may explain earlier research that found that kids who rode in shopping carts were more likely than others to develop infections caused by bacteria such as salmonella and campylobacter, Gerba said. Shopping cart handles aren’t the only thing you need to worry about when you go to the local supermarket, Gerba added. In other research, he’s found that reusable shopping bags that aren’t regularly washed turn into bacterial swamps. “It’s like wearing the same underwear every day,” Gerba said. The best way to keep kids safe, Gerba said, is to swipe the shopping cart handle with a disinfecting wipe before you pop your kid into the basket. One thing Gerba couldn’t say was how likely it was that a child would get sick from touching — or even sucking on — a contaminated handle. As far as Dr. Neil Fishman is concerned, that risk isn’t very big. “I’d be worried if there was any evidence of any disease outbreaks related to shopping cart use,” said Fishman, an infectious disease expert and director of health care epidemiology and infection prevention at the University of Pennsylvania Health System. “There isn’t — and we’ve been using them for a long time.” While there may, indeed, be bacteria on shopping cart handles, they can also be found on doorknobs, countertops and a host of other items we touch every day, Fishman said. “My guess is that there are more bacteria on a car seat than on a shopping cart,” he added. Ultimately, your only defense against germs is to keep your hands — and your kids’ hands — squeaky clean, Fishman said. “While you can’t sterilize your environment, you can limit exposure by practicing good hand hygiene,” he added. “For most cases, alcohol hand rubs are the best for every day use.”[/quote] [img]http://msnbcmedia1.msn.com/j/MSNBC/Components/Photo/2011/February/110228/g-hth-110301-shopping-carts-6a.grid-6x2.jpg[/img] Source [url]http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/41838546/ns/health-kids_and_parenting?GT1=43001[/url] This is really gross. I don't ever want to use shopping carts again without wiping them.

Oh god I never thought of this.

Well I guess if you think about it, shopping carts must be great places for viruses and shit to reproduce

It's because they never fucking clean them. I used to work at Safeway... Terrible place, evil cooperation.

The only thing we can establish from this survey is that shopping carts within the (I assume) randomly chosen [B]four[/B] out of [B]fifty[/B] states were tested for bacteria and showed high results of bacterial spread within a (I assume, and if it isn't then there is something wrong with this study) random selection of shopping carts. Extrapolating these results any further is ridiculous. Not to mention, we should already know that shopping carts are gross because dozens of people touch them every day and there is no way to determine what they may or may not carry with them.

Oh, c'mon, that shit is on everything.

[QUOTE=HellSoldier;28365186]The only thing we can establish from this survey is that shopping carts within the vicinity of the University of Arizona were tested for bacteria and showed high results of bacterial spread within a (I assume, and if it isn't then there is something wrong with this study) random selection of shopping carts. Extrapolating these results any further is ridiculous. Not to mention, we should already know that shopping carts are gross because dozens of people touch them every day and there is no way to determine what they may or may not carry with them.[/QUOTE] They tested in [b]4[/b] states.

they should build a machine where you put the cart after you've used it, and inside it they spray it with alcohol and other shit.

:barf:

[QUOTE=_Chewgum;28365202]they should build a machine where you put the cart after you've used it, and inside it they spray it with alcohol and other shit.[/QUOTE] Shopping cart car wash.

Not much you can do about it. I worked at a grocery store and we cleaned the carts every night, but it is not really practical to keep carts clean throughout the shopping day.

[quote]The best way to keep kids safe, Gerba said, is to swipe the shopping cart handle with a disinfecting wipe before you pop your kid into the basket.[/quote] No the best way to protect your kids is to do NOTHING. Covering everything with fucking disinfectant just makes your immune system weaker. E.coli is in the dirt. Hell the dirt itself is comprised of large amounts of fecal matter. We've spent the past several million years defending against it without issue. Soap + water = clean enough. We can resist bacteria just fine on our own. Bullshit like this is just going to produce more helicopter moms. [editline]1st March 2011[/editline] [QUOTE=_Chewgum;28365202]they should build a machine where you put the cart after you've used it, and inside it they spray it with alcohol and other shit.[/QUOTE] They do. It uses high levels of UV radiation to kill everything on the cart.

[QUOTE=GunFox;28365264]No the best way to protect your kids is to do NOTHING. Covering everything with fucking disinfectant just makes your immune system weaker. Soap + water = clean enough. We can resist bacteria just fine on our own. Bullshit like this is just going to produce more helicopter moms. [editline]1st March 2011[/editline] They do. It uses high levels of UV radiation to kill everything on the cart.[/QUOTE] yeah man let ur kid get ecoli itll toughen him up and build character >:)

I hate it when people are overly paranoid about bacteria.

[QUOTE=Derkaderk;28365279]yeah man let ur kid get ecoli itll toughen him up and build character >:)[/QUOTE] Are you stupid or something?

What people don't seem to realize is.... NOT ALL FUCKING E. COLI IS GOING TO KILL YOU! Very few strains of E. Coli are actually dangerous. Way to fearmonger, article writer. Like GunFox said, if we coat our kids in bubble wrap and disinfectant, we're going to die out due to our lack of a proper immune system.

[QUOTE=Derkaderk;28365279]yeah man let ur kid get ecoli itll toughen him up and build character >:)[/QUOTE] E.coli bacteria is everywhere. You have E.coli in your intestinal tract right now, genius. It is a useful part of your digestive system. Only a very small number of types are even remotely dangerous. They are rare and even if exposed it is highly unlikely that anything will happen.

[QUOTE=GunFox;28365264]No the best way to protect your kids is to do NOTHING. Covering everything with fucking disinfectant just makes your immune system weaker. E.coli is in the dirt. Hell the dirt itself is comprised of large amounts of fecal matter. We've spent the past several million years defending against it without issue. Soap + water = clean enough. We can resist bacteria just fine on our own. Bullshit like this is just going to produce more helicopter moms. [editline]1st March 2011[/editline] They do. It uses high levels of UV radiation to kill everything on the cart.[/QUOTE] I agree entirely with you there, The only way to get your immune system tough is to actually live your life as your ancestors did, not caring for anything only when you get infected with something very nasty.

Stomach flu* is very wide spread right now, you dont want to catch that. Puke puke puke.

This was a bit shocking, but nothing that we wouldn't expect really. As GunFox said: "Covering everything with fucking disinfectant just makes your immune system weaker." which is totally true. News like this is making people more paranoid against germs and the sale of disinfection facilities will skyrise, but they don't consider what such facilities might affect you from long term exposure to it.

[QUOTE=GunFox;28365264]Soap + water = clean enough. We can resist bacteria just fine on our own.[/QUOTE] Besides, if someone can't, there are hospitals that'll help them with that right away. It'll probably be more painful to go through treatment against infections and such on the short term, but I agree that it's better than weakening our immune systems on the long term because some people got all huffy about bacteria.

:ohdear:

Wow nice, I work with carts all day and I haven't gotten sick throught the 1 and a half years of pushing them up to the cart area of my Walmart. Hmmm I wonder what is the disconnect is here, right I have a good immune system, or as others said only certain strains of E. Coli are bad.

Yeah anything a member of the public can touch should be considered to have had poop smeared on it. And never assume the employees clean anything. Some people are disgusting. They'll crap, then walk away without washing their hands. Think about that the next time someone wants to shake your hand.

I'll laugh at the new generations and their lack of defense against common germs. We'll soon be like the aliens at the end of "War of the Worlds", except Tom Cruise won't be there to save anyone.

Think of all the infants who are teething. Babies will suck on [i]anything[/i] to relieve the pain associated with the formation of teeth, including shopping cart handles. :ohdear:

[QUOTE=Keyblockor;28365341]I agree entirely with you there, The only way to get your immune system tough is to actually live your life as your ancestors did, not caring for anything only when you get infected with something very nasty.[/QUOTE] you really don't want to live like your ancestors did unless you dig not bathing

Your hands are covered in all kinds of bacteria, ban hands!

woo free HDD space

[QUOTE=GunFox;28365264] Soap + water = clean enough. We can resist bacteria just fine on our own. [/QUOTE] That is very important, but this may be causing an epidemic of allergies. I watched a documentary that showed that there has been a huuge increase in people with allergies due to more reliance on soaps. Or at least, that is what the theory is.