http://abcnews.go.com/Health/Germs/soda-fountains-squirt-fecal-bacteria-study-finds/story?id=9506583

Soda Fountains Squirt Fecal Bacteria, Study Finds

Quote :

"Experts Say Infections Could Spread If Fountains Are Not Cleaned Properly By LAUREN COX ABC News Medical Unit Jan. 8, 2010— Those soda fountain machines found in restaurants and fast food joints may be squirting out liquids contaminated with fecal bacteria, a small study found. Whether it was self-serve or behind the counter, nearly half of all sodas dispensed from a sample of 30 machines in the Roanoke Valley in Virginia had coliform bacteria -- a group of bacteria banned in drinking water by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) because it indicates the possibility of fecal contamination. "The EPA regulates our drinking supply, and there can be some bacteria, but one of the things that is not allowed is coliform bacteria," said Renee D. Godard, professor of biology at Hollins University and a co-author of the paper published in the January print issue of the International Journal of Food Microbiology. "We can't have that in our drinking supply. But they're coming out of these soda fountain machines," she said. The soda machines had turned into a bacteria metropolis with Escherichia coli (E. coli), species of Klebsiella, Staphylococcus, Stenotrophomonas, Candida, and Serratia. Most of the bacteria were resistant to the 11 antibiotics Godard tested on her samples. "About 70 percent of the beverages had bacteria and 48 percent of them had coliform bacteria," said Godard. However, only 20 percent of the sodas sampled had coliform bacteria that exceeded the EPA limit for drinking water. Since the tap water and ice from the machines didn't test positive for bacteria, Godard and her team ruled out the possibility of a valley-wide contamination of the water supply. Various brands of soft drinks and various types -- sugared, diet or even water -- were contaminated, leading Godard to think that it wasn't the soda, but the machine that was growing bacteria. From all her testing, Godard still isn't sure where the bacteria came from. Few people observed in the restaurants touched the nozzles of the soda fountain machines and restaurant managers Godard interviewed reported cleaning the nozzles daily. But only one restaurant manager reported rinsing the plastic tubing within the machines on a regular basis."

Click to read all.

2/10/2010 12:56:29 PM

Quote :

"Jan. 8, 2010"

2/10/2010 12:57:51 PM

youre not being bathed in feces

you are being bathed in bacteria borne of feces

2/10/2010 12:57:51 PM

tubgirl.jpg

2/10/2010 12:58:33 PM

and who bathes in a soda fountain

2/10/2010 12:59:09 PM

^^^^ dirka dirka dirka jihad... it is a month old... kill him

2/10/2010 12:59:54 PM

I guess when your skin is that thin, you do have to worry about the soda dispensers in a foreign country and their potential to harm you.

Quick, to the bunker.

[Edited on February 10, 2010 at 1:02 PM. Reason : in]

2/10/2010 1:02:19 PM

i don't drink soda, hambeast

2/10/2010 1:03:33 PM

It's called an immune system. Get one and hush up.

2/10/2010 1:07:49 PM

I love how they start off with "fecal bacteria" like they are shoving the nozzles up their asses or some shit.

2/10/2010 1:09:48 PM

ooooooooooooooooh this soft drink tastes soooooooooo gooooooooood

2/10/2010 1:10:38 PM

Just like in Mexico City!

http://recalde.tripod.com/ch12.html

Quote :

"Case Study: Mexico City About one of every six Mexicans (15.6 million) live in Mexico City, due to immigration. Every day 2000 rural peasant pour into the city, hoping to find a better way of life. Mexico City has severe air pollution, high unemployment, congestion and high crime. More than one-third live in slums (barrios) without water, electricity, or sewers. Human waste is deposited in gutters and the winds pick up dried excrement, fecal snow that falls on the city spreading salmonella and hepatitis. Air pollution from vehicles, factories and stoves is intensified because Mexico City lies in a basin, and thermal inversions trap pollutants at ground level. Plus, engines burn gasoline less efficiently at the high altitudes of the city. Breathing the air is like smoking two packs of cigarettes a day. Many foreign companies give imported workers additional "hazard pay" for working in Mexico City. Mexico City is far from self-sufficient. Most of the nearby forest has been cut, cropland has been converted to urban development, lakes have dried up and water comes from other water-scarce basins. The Mexican government is industrializing other areas in an attempt to slow migration to Mexico City. Cars have been banned from a 50-block central zone. Unleaded gas began being phased in 1991, and since 1993, all new cars must have catalytic converters. The government planted 25 million trees to help clean the air. "

2/10/2010 1:17:02 PM

Didn't they do a mythbusters on this? No matter what they did, everything in the house ended up with fecal bacteria on it.


In any case, how is this exposure different from what humans are adapted to handle? I highly doubt people were cleaner back in the day.

[Edited on February 10, 2010 at 1:21 PM. Reason : .]

2/10/2010 1:20:08 PM

Doesn't matter.
Don't you know that we, as Americans, live in a sterile world, and all pathogens and germs are completely unaccpetable?

That crap is for the rest of the world, not us.

2/10/2010 1:26:54 PM

Yeah, I know that.

2/10/2010 1:28:11 PM

I doubt you do.

Seeing as how you can't even figure out that I wasn't talking to you in ^^

2/10/2010 1:29:39 PM

Yeah, I know that too.

2/10/2010 1:30:23 PM

Right.

2/10/2010 1:30:59 PM

Yup.

2/10/2010 1:32:45 PM

Pillowfight ITT

2/10/2010 1:35:48 PM

we all mostly live in a ~20-50 foot layer of air that is contaminated with shit, dead skin, mites, etc.

2/10/2010 3:43:41 PM

YOU MEAN TO TELL ME THERE ARE BACTERIA IN PUBLIC PLACES?
WTFFFFFFFFFFF
HOW COUD THIS HAPPEN TO THE USssssssssssssss?????

2/10/2010 3:49:47 PM

thank whoever scratched their ass then filled the drink machine

2/10/2010 4:27:19 PM

gross

2/10/2010 4:28:00 PM

everything's fucking dirty

news at 11

I mean... come on.

2/10/2010 4:30:50 PM

I FUCKIN SHOWAH IN DAT SHIT

2/10/2010 4:32:07 PM

Quote :

""The EPA regulates our drinking supply, and there can be some bacteria, but one of the things that is not allowed is coliform bacteria," said Renee D. Godard ... ... ... "We can't have that in our drinking supply. But they're coming out of these soda fountain machines," she said. ... ... ... However, only 20 percent of the sodas sampled had coliform bacteria that exceeded the EPA limit for drinking water. "

[/remembers grinding feet into Eddie's couch]

2/10/2010 4:39:18 PM

Fecal Snow is an awesome term

2/10/2010 4:40:17 PM

i hate these "studies". okay yeah there may be bacteria on the soda dispenser/toilet seat/coffee cup/whatever, but it didn't get there yesterday. people have been living with this for forever and it's not killing us (except for the people with bad immune systems). stfu and get over it.

2/10/2010 4:42:19 PM

i must be immune to this, i used to drink soda like no ones business

2/10/2010 5:20:47 PM

I love pouring feces-laden soda into my pie hole.

2/10/2010 5:22:10 PM

i wear a full hazmat suit when i go in my bathroom

2/10/2010 5:23:05 PM

holy shit u dont don the air purifying respirator also?

2/10/2010 5:23:57 PM

of course i do. i didn't specify that b/c i thought everyone did it.

2/10/2010 5:24:54 PM

It should be a forgone conclusion that disgusting bacteria is all around you, especially in a restaurant (for anyone that’s ever worked in a restaurant).

But, humans are adapted to survive much harsher environment that what we’re generally exposed to.

With that said, it’d be nice if they cleaned the machines better every once in a while. ESPECIALLY the Burger King on Avent Ferry.

2/10/2010 6:50:33 PM