British scientists have found that public banking machines are in fact dirtier than public washrooms, containing bacteria that can cause diarrhea and other unlucky illnesses.
'We were astonished by our results because the ATM machines were shown to be a lot contaminated with bacteria; to the same level as nearby public lavatories," Richard Hastings, a microbiologist for BioCote, which supported the study, told the Telegraph newspaper. "In addition, the bacteria we detected on ATMs were similar to those from the toilet, which are well-known as causes of frequent human illnesses."
The researchers took mop up of public banking machines and then took separate swabs of nearby public washrooms. The samples were allowed to grow overnight and then contrast under a microscope.
The study came on the heels of a public view survey that asked people to list the dirtiest public places. The study compares those consequences with its findings from the swabs.
Public washrooms topped the list of thought-to-be dirtiest places, according to the Telegraph, followed by public telephones, bus stops, subway stations and bus seats.
"But it's ironic that while people distinguish chip and pin pads to be the least dirty, our swabbing experiments have actually shown them to be dirtier than public lavatories," Hastings said.
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