US Army Medical Research Unit discovers deadly germs in Kenyan money

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Do you touch money on a day-to-day basis without washing your hands afterwards?

A lot of people aren’t washing their hands, and they’re at a restaurant and money is going back and forth.

A new study that involved researchers from Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology (Jkuat) and the US Army Medical Research Unit–Kenya has given new meaning to the term “dirty money.”

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The researcher’s tested money for eight types of disease-causing organisms and all were confirmed present on the notes and coins. Of these, 20 per cent were food-borne pathogens.

This research was similar with that reported from ABS findings that researchers found that bills from a Manhattan bank carried 3,000 types of bacteria. Most were the kind found on people’s skin, while others were similar to those found in mouths and even in vaginas.

Image result for money with germs health

They said their study suggests that paper money could be a way for bacteria to pass between people.

The most tainted was the Sh20 coins and Sh50 notes, possibly because of their wide circulation. The least contamination was in Sh1, Sh5 coins and the Sh1,000 notes.
The most prevalent germs found in all the denominations were Staphylococcus species. These are known to cause skin, heart and bone infections, food poisoning, pneumonia and toxic shock in humans.

Image result for money with germs health

Bills get traded constantly, and depending on the denomination, they can stay in circulation for five to 15 years.

Also found in the money was E coli, a contaminant usually from human feaces and known to cause most of the urinary tract infections. A whole lot of other equally dangerous pathogens were found on the money sampled.
Equally, phones were tested and confirmed to be tainted with 12 pathogens, with Staphylococcus species being the most prevalent.

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The study reports more than a third of the participants had no training in food handling, while 34 were sick at the time of the survey, some suffering from stomach problems.
While most reported washing their hands after visiting the toilet, 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.

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