‘Avoid handling food and currency simultaneously to avoid various kinds of diseases such as food poisoning, respiratory, gastrointestinal infections et al’
While there have been several studies about the health hazards caused by the microbes that lurk on the coins or currency handled in an unhygienic manner, it is only now that the country’s top food regulator has woken up to this deadly source of contamination.
The Food Safety and Standard Authority of India (FSSAI) has recently issued a public health advisory to the food handlers and food vendors to avoid handling food and currency simultaneously to avoid various kinds of diseases including food poisoning, and skin, respiratory and gastrointestinal infections.
The FSSAI has noted that handling of currency with uncleaned hands and use of salvia during counting of coins or currency and storage of currency in unhygienic condition will lead to contamination with harmful micro-organism.
According to the circular issued recently, the FSSAI has advised the concerned stakeholders that after handling currency, hands should be thoroughly washed before touching food and vice versa.
Ideally, handling of the food and currency should be physically separated. It is recommended that gloves should be used to handle food and bare hands to handle currency, it noted adding that pregnant women, children and immune compromised people are easy prey to such contamination.
The FSSAI has also asked the State food commissioners to raise awareness among people about this menace and discourage the simultaneous handling of food and currency.
This is not the first time that the threats from the contaminated currency have come to the light. In fact, numerous studies have shown that currency notes are loaded with pathogenic micro organisms, the most common being Escherichia Coli or E Coli that is found in faecal matter.
A study conducted by the microbiology department of Kasturba Medical College in Karnataka’s Manipal published in Current Science in 2011 found that 96 per cent of the coins and 100 per cent of the sample notes were contaminated with pathogens such as Staphy lococcus Aureus, E Coli and Klebsiella spp. Worse, many of them were resistant to commonly used antibiotics.
E Coli is known to cause diarrhoea, urinary tract infections, neonatal meningitis and pneumonia while Staphylococcus Aureus can cause toxic shock syndrome, skin infections, urinary tract and respiratory tract infections.
Citing various studies, Pushpa Girimaji, a well known consumer rights columnist too notes that the currency notes are a source of infection and dangerous to health, more so because many of the pathogens on them are multi-drug resistant strains.
“But more importantly, these studies bring to light, the imperative need to ensure that hotels, hospitals, school and office canteens, restaurants, street food stalls, shops selling bakery products, mithai, and even those preparing food for mid-day meals and religious places, do not contaminate food with currency either at the time of preparation or at the time of sale or distribution.”