People carry money in the strangest places; some people stash it inside their brassiere or hide it in their socks. A January 2009 Reuters report indicates that banknotes may be harboring the common flu virus. Reports in the journal of Applied and Environmental Microbiology indicate that human influenza viruses can survive on currency for as long as 17 days.
Arguably bankers, tellers and cashiers are at high risk for coming in contact with tainted bills. But is frequent hand washing enough? It is not practical for tellers to wash their hands after each transaction, nor is using an alcohol-based instant hand sanitizer 50 times a day healthy for ones skin. The germs pass from the bills, to the hands, to the keyboard, mice and desks. There are two parts to this equation. First, to protect the hard surfaces an EPA approved anti-microbial spray can be used to disinfect. Ideally a “green” product which lasts for many hours would be an improvement over other options. PureGreen24 kills flu, staph, MRSA and athlete’s foot, yet it is EPA rated for use with children’s toys. And, it lasts for up to 24 hours- so you don’t have to constantly spray.
Keeping the hands clean between washings is more difficult. One answer might be SkinWear, an alcohol-free hand sanitizer which offers protection lasting up to 8 hours.
Applying SkinWear to the hands should minimize transmission of germs from the money to the hands, and consequently reduce the spread throughout the bank. In addition, for bankers who greet numerous clients a day with hand shakes this would afford protection to them and their clients.
And germs may not be the only problem with our currency. researchers at City University in Dublin, Ireland announced that 100 per cent of the bank notes that they had studied carried trace amounts of cocaine. Just a month before, a study suggested that 94 per cent of banknotes in Spain were similarly contaminated.
According to Philip Turner, “Many studies, including two of my own, have shown that money can be effective for germ transaction. ABC’s “20/20″ asked me to help them prepare a segment on this issue, and I devised a plan for collecting money from street vendors, shops, restaurants, and other establishments in Chicago, New York City, and Washington, DC. After each transaction, the bills received were put directly into newly purchased wallets, which were then sealed in plastic. The bills were tested and found to be contaminated with germs of fecal, respiratory, and skin origin. Although the risk of contracting a serious infection from dirty money is low, the germ count is high enough to make it easy to contract a cold, a bout of diarrhea, and similar ailments.”
In general, the flu is passed hand to hand, and self-inoculated through the membranes of the eyes, nose and mouth. The CDC now recommends that just about everyone get the flu shot: kids 6 months to 19 years of age, pregnant women, people 50 and up, and people of any age with compromised immune systems.