According to a local health and hygiene firm, shopping trolleys rival the average public toilet as a health risk.
Most individuals view it as nothing more than a necessary chore, but a visit to the local supermarket exposes you to more risk than you might appreciate.
According to local health and hygiene firm Bidvest Steiner, a 2011 study in the United States found that supermarket shopping trolleys rival the average public toilet as a health risk.
Risk of infection
The study examined 85 trolleys and found that 72% of them tested positive for faecal bacteria and half carried traces of the dreaded E. coli, the source of the most severe (and sometimes fatal) “food poisoning”.
“Any surface that is routinely touched by multiple people poses a risk of infection,” says Rika van Rooyen of Bidvest Steiner. “Hands are one of the biggest factors in the spread of viruses, so it stands to reason that supermarket trolleys should act as transfer mechanisms for all sorts of unpleasant microbes.”
Ms Van Rooyen also referred to the Dettol HABIT Study, one of the largest studies of hygiene behaviour ever conducted globally. It found that just under half of all people (46%) did not follow good personal hygiene habits by washing their hands with soap five or more times a day.
South Africans, the study showed, pretty much conform to this average although we show a lower propensity to use anti-bacterial soap than the global average.
In short, the health safety of the trolley, and particularly its handle, is directly dependent on the hand hygiene of those unknowns who have used it since its last wash. Ms Van Rooyen suggested that consumers request that their local retailers provide adequate trolley wipes, hand sanitiser stations and other services aimed at safeguarding the health of their patrons.
According to local health and hygiene firm Bidvest Steiner, a 2011 study in the United States found that supermarket shopping trolleys rival the average public toilet as a health risk.
Risk of infection
The study examined 85 trolleys and found that 72% of them tested positive for faecal bacteria and half carried traces of the dreaded E. coli, the source of the most severe (and sometimes fatal) “food poisoning”.
“Any surface that is routinely touched by multiple people poses a risk of infection,” says Rika van Rooyen of Bidvest Steiner. “Hands are one of the biggest factors in the spread of viruses, so it stands to reason that supermarket trolleys should act as transfer mechanisms for all sorts of unpleasant microbes.”
Ms Van Rooyen also referred to the Dettol HABIT Study, one of the largest studies of hygiene behaviour ever conducted globally. It found that just under half of all people (46%) did not follow good personal hygiene habits by washing their hands with soap five or more times a day.
South Africans, the study showed, pretty much conform to this average although we show a lower propensity to use anti-bacterial soap than the global average.
In short, the health safety of the trolley, and particularly its handle, is directly dependent on the hand hygiene of those unknowns who have used it since its last wash. Ms Van Rooyen suggested that consumers request that their local retailers provide adequate trolley wipes, hand sanitiser stations and other services aimed at safeguarding the health of their patrons.
Source:http://www.health24.com/
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