Is That e-Coli on That Button?

Doctor says "We're bathed in feces"

They're all around you ... but you can't see them.

Potentially dangerous germs are all over buttons you press almost every day: in an elevator, at the ATM or even at the microwave in your own kitchen.

Grossed you out yet?

WNBC took samples from buttons at six random spots around the city, including an outdoor ATM, a Muni-Meter, an elevator, an office telephone, a computer keyboard and a microwave oven. Then renowned NYU microbiologist Dr. Philip Tierno did some testing.

The ATM was just gross. 

"This e-coli is an indicator that someone didn't wash their hands properly," Tierno said. And it gets worse. 

"The results ... were very typical of what we ordinarily see -- feces is the No. 1 problem we really have in humanity," he said. "We're bathed in feces because people simply don't properly wash their hands."

The microwave oven contained "a few colonies of a mouth streptococcus ... and an entrococcus, which represents fecal bacteria and a few yeast. Probably a female might have touched that," said Tierno. Nasty!

Which button was the most potentially hazardous? Believe it or not, the elevator button. It had "pure culture of staph, and that can give rise to a skin infection or even a gastroenteritis," Tierno said.

The computer keyboard had some skin staph. The phone contained traces of strep. But the muni-meter proved the "cleanest," holding mostly organisms that are found in the air.

And if you feel like running out right now and washing your hands -- bingo. That's what Tierno says everyone should be doing more often and more thoroughly. He suggests washing with an antibacterial soap or alcoholic gel for at least 30 seconds, and making sure you get in between your fingers and under your fingernails.

His best advice? The same thing he's been saying for years -- something all of us know but too few of us do properly: "Wash your hands thoroughly prior to eating or drinking or touching your face, especially your mouth, your nose, your eyes," Tierno said.

So, go ahead and eat that sandwich. Maybe you should wear gloves though, just in case.

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