Ever dreamed of putting your lips up to the soda fountain and depressing the drink lever? Don't do it.
The Smithsonian Food & Think Blog links to a disturbing study from the International Journal of Food Microbiology that analyzed the "microbial population," on 30 soda fountain machines.
A team of biologists in Roanoke, Virginia looked at 20 self-serve machines and 10 restaurant dispensers and found that 11 percent of the dispensers had traces of E.coli bacteria. But of even greater concern is that most of the bacteria they discovered was resistant to "one or more of the 11 antibiotics tested."
As to what that means for soda drinkers, the Smithsonian offered this gut punch:
The scientists concluded that such soda fountains "may contribute to episodic gastric distress in the general population," or more serious consequences for immunocompromised people, revealing a need for better hygiene regulations and enforcement.So, the next time you make a suicide, keep in mind that term might be more accurate than than you thought.
