Stories of Bacteria on purses, reason for purse hooks

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STORY 1, FROM ABC NEWS, By ELISABETH LEAMY, Aug. 8, 2006

Your Purse Could Be Making You Sick
A Microbiologist Found Millions of Germs on Purses

Women rarely go anywhere without a purse, which means that if a woman enters a place full of germs, so does her bag. That could mean she ends up carrying around microbes that could make her sick all day long.

Microbiologist Chuck Gerba researches where organisms that make us sick lurk and lately he says he has found that germs gather on the outside of a woman's purse, especially on the bottom.

"We found fecal bacteria you normally find on the floor of restroom," he said. "We found bacteria that can cause skin infections on the bottom of purses. What's more amazing is the large numbers we find on the bottom of purses, which indicates that they can be picking up a lot of other germs like cold viruses or viruses that cause diarrhea."

Using a hand-held germ meter, Gerba demonstrated how much bacteria can grow on a woman's purse for ABC News, with results that ranged from scary to downright terrifying. Health experts worry when the meter reads over 200, which means thousands of bacteria are present.

He found thousands of germs on one woman's purse. She bought her bag about a month ago and Gerba's measurements showed her purse also carried thousands of germs. ABC News is not naming the women who participated in order to protect their identities.

"I'll probably just get a new one," she said.

Yet another woman has been carrying a handbag around for years and Gerba said that he found "hundreds of thousands of germs on the surface."

Gerba found about half a million bacteria on the bottom of one woman's large bag.

Subways for Germs
Each time ABC News and Gerba ran an instant field test and later a lab test on swabs from the outside bottom of 10 women's purses, every single one had at least some bacteria, most had tens of thousands and a few were saturated with millions. One even had 6.7 million bacteria.

Half of the bags tested positive for coliform bacteria, which indicated the possible presence of human or animal waste.

Many women ABC News interviewed were not concerned.

"It doesn't bother me. I don't touch the bottom of my purse," the woman with the large bag said.

But Gerba said that women who carry around bags with them at all times should be concerned.

"It matters because you can move germs that can cause illness from one location to another," he said. "You can later touch that purse and get them on your hands, or you could put your purse near a food preparation area and transfer germs to areas you may touch during food preparation."

Some women argued that they do not lick the bottom of their purses, so they should not be in danger of getting sick, but it is very easy to unknowingly transfer germs. For example, whatever touched the bottom of your purse touches you when you grab it. If you eat a sandwich soon after that, the germs go right into your mouth.

"The purses are really becoming subways for micro organisms," Gerba said. "They're being transferred from one location to another. So it's just like germ 'public transportation.' I'm afraid to touch them. You know, I know too much. I'll never become a purse snatcher, believe me."

STORY 2, FROM NEWSMAX, NewsMax.com Wires, Friday, Aug. 25, 2006

Ladies, Your Purse Could Make You Sick

A purse can carry almost everything ... including an overabundance of germs and bacteria.

Researchers at the University of Arizona tested dozens of women's purses. Every single one had at least some contaminants that could cause sickness. Most had tens of thousands. One even reached the 6.7 million mark. (And that particular lady had purchased her handbag in the previous month.)

When microbiologist Chuck Gerba, who lead the study, demonstrated his discovery on ABC News by using a hand-held meter on audience members' purses, he found that half the bags tested positive for coliform bacteria - also known as fecal matter.

It was the bottom of the purses that contained the majority of the germs.

And the reason is simple.

We ladies set down our bags on the floor in public restrooms. We then put them on the microbe-laden sink to wash our hands.

Many women also place their purse in the toddler seat of the shopping cart at the grocery store. (Those seats typically cradle the bums of children wearing leaky diapers.) They toss them under their chair in a restaurant where the last customer just dropped a shrimp. And who doesn't plop their bag on the ground from time to time, possibly in the same spot where the neighbor just walked his dog.

"Purses are becoming subways for micro organisms," said Gerba. "They're being transferred from one location to another. So it's like germ ‘public transportation'."

The real concern is that women carry their purses then eat a sandwich or prepare a family meal.

Scientists suggest that all purses, briefcases and backpacks should be wiped down once a week with a disinfectant wipe to avoid contracting viruses that can cause the common cold or diarrhea.

"I'm afraid to touch them," Gerba said. "I'll never become a purse snatcher, believe me."

STORY 3, ABOUT.COM, MAY 2006

A Dog's Mouth Is Cleaner than Your Purse

LADIES/MEN, BEWARE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

This is very informative.

This is a factual report aired today on Health News, Fox 5, Atlanta, GA. A study was recently performed on women's purses. A health team went to a local mall and took samples from the bottom of 50 women's purses. The purses were swabbed with cotton swabs along the entire bottom of the purses and placed into special containers. The swabs were then processed at a local laboratory.

The Health Report also showed where women place their purses: public restrooms (on the floor beside the toilet), kitchen counters & kitchen tables, on tables & chairs in restaurants, etc. The results of the laboratory tests contained the following most serious result: 1 out of 4 purses contained E COLI. Other extremely serious bacteria also were listed, including Hepatitis.

They recommended that women should DAILY wipe their purses (particularly the bottom) with a disinfectant wipe and to be extremely careful where you set your purse. Most important, do NOT place your purse on a table (anywhere) where you will eat or on a kitchen counter, and do not put it anywhere close to a toilet. Remember, when you flush a toilet, the spray goes a distance that is unrecognizable by the human eye.

WASH YOUR HANDS as often as you can! Keep an antibacterial hand sanitizer cleaner (no water needed) in your purse and use it often! And as soon as you get home from shopping (or wherever you have been and used your purse), immediately wipe it all over with a disinfectant wipe.

MEN who do not wash their hands after relieving themselves should be ASHAMED! Not only that, they are seriously affecting your health and their own. My husband has told me many, many times (over 50% ratio) that he has seen men in public restrooms relieve themselves, zip up, and immediately leave the restroom without washing their hands!! Women, get on your men and be sure they are washing thoroughly after using the restroom.

My hubby also noted that everyone spends all this time washing their hands and then grabs the door handle to exit the restroom. So DUH! All those other folks who did NOT wash their hands have their germs all over the door handle! And I have seen many women who do NOT wash their hands after using the restroom. So, use that paper towel you dried your hands on to open the door and then dispose of it in the closest waste receptacle. (Women, please do not put it in your purse!).

Please do your part for yourself and everyone else! As soon as I saw the report, I immediately cleaned my purse with my Clorox Antibacterial Wipe and then set it on a paper towel, where I normally place it on a table in our den. And I asked my hubby to PLEASE scold me if he ever saw me putting my purse on the kitchen table or counter again!

STORY 4, LIFESCRIPT, HEALTH NEWS BYTE, Sunday, November 5, 2006

Women's Purses Play Host to Germs

Germ colonies lurk anywhere and everywhere they can make a home, from keyboards to door knobs, phone receivers to laundry hampers. One place women may not think to find germs, though, is their purse or handbag. All the more surprising, then, are the findings of a recent study of germ counts on the surface of the average woman's purse. According to researchers at Nelson Laboratories in Salt Lake City, Utah, women's purses may be not only high in overall germ counts, but especially prone to carrying some of the most harmful varieties of bugs. Among the nasty bacteria found on purses were salmonella and E. coli, which can cause food poisoning and gastrointestinal problems, and pseudomonas, which causes eye infections. Perhaps even more cringe-worthy: researchers found evidence of trace fecal contamination on the majority of the purses tested. Results of the study were reported in a recent piece by the local news affiliate KUTV.

What This Means for You
In general, handbags made from leather or vinyl were found to be less germ-prone than cloth purses. Most germ-populated of all were purses of women who reported frequenting nightclubs, bars or other high-traffic public areas. For cloth purses, researchers recommended regular washing. Leather or vinyl handbags should be cleaned with fabric-appropriate solvents.