Traces Of Poo Found On Every McDonald’s Touch Screen Tested

By Luke Miller

Human Faeces Found On Every McDonald’s Touch Screen Tested

An investigation from the university’s school of human sciences, found traces of human faeces on every single McDonald’s order touch screen swabbed.

The study was conducted by the Metro.co.uk with the university’s school of human sciences, where they took swabs from eight McDonald’s restaurants in London and Birmingham. The result was shocking as all the machines were found to have traces of human poo. Dr Paul Matawele, a microbiologist from the London Metropolitan University said: ‘We were all surprised how much gut and faecal bacteria there was on the touchscreen machines. These cause the kind of infections that people pick up in hospitals. For instance Enterococcus faecalis is part of the flora of gastrointestinal tracts of healthy humans and other mammals. It is notorious in hospitals for causing hospital acquired infections.’

McDonald’s recently added the screens so diners can choose their food from the touchscreens and then go up to the counter to collect their food. You would probably find that most people do not wash their hands in between these interactions.

Poo May Be The Least Of Our Worries

One of the screens tested was found to have staphylococcus, which is a bacteria known to cause blood poisoning and toxic shock syndrome. Dr Matawele said: ‘Seeing Staphylococcus on these machines is worrying because it is so contagious. ‘It starts around people’s noses, if they touch their nose with their fingers and then transfer it to the touchscreen someone else will get it, and if they have an open cut which it gets into, then it can be dangerous. There is a lot of worries at the moment that staphylococcus is becoming resistant to antibiotics. However, it is still really dangerous in places like Africa where it can cause toxic shock.’

They found Listeria in the Oxford Street and Holloway Road branches. This bacteria can cause listeriosis which often leads to pregnant women to miscarriage or have stillbirths. Dr Matewele said: ‘Listeria is another rare bacterium we were shocked to find on touchscreen machines as again this can be very contagious and a problem for those with a weak immune system.’

Over 5000 people have downloaded our free ebook “Growth Hacking Tips And Rituals For Optimal Living” CLICK HERE to get your free copy now

75% of the tested screens found traces of the bacteria proteus. Dr Matewele said: ‘Proteus can be found in human and animal faeces. It is also widely distributed in soil. It can cause urinary tract infections and is also one of the hospital acquired infections where it may responsible for septicaemia. ‘Klebsiella is also from the gut and mouth, they are associated with urinary tract infections, septicemia and diarrhoea. Some species can infect the respiratory tract resulting in pneumonia.’

Is Touchscreen Technology Unhygienic? 

Matewele added: ‘Touchscreen technology is being used more and more in our daily lives but these results show people should not eat food straight after touching them, they are unhygienic and can spread disease. ‘Someone can be very careful about their own hygiene throughout the day but it could all be undone by using a touchscreen machine once.’

A McDonald’s spokesman has defended the restaurant saying: ‘Our self-order screens are cleaned frequently throughout the day. All of our restaurants also provide facilities for customers to wash their hands before eating.’

Bacteria Results

The following restaurants were tested and here are the findings:

Oxford Circus McDonald’s

• Coliforms
• Staphylococcus aureus pseudomonas
• Enterococcus faecalis
• Proteus
• Bacillus

Birmingham, Pigeon Park, McDonald’s

• Coliforms
• Pseudomonas
• Enterococcus faecalis
• Proteus
• Bacillus
• Klebsiella

Holloway Road McDonald’s

• Coliforms
• Proteus
• Baciillus
• Listeria
• Enterococcus faecalis
• Klebsiela

Oxford Street McDonald’s

• Listeria
• Bacillus
• Coliforms
• Enterococcus faecalis
• Klebsiela

Kensington High Street McDonald’s

• Coliforms
• Pseudomonas
• Micrococcus
• Staphylococcus
• Bacillus

Seven Sisters Road McDonald’s

• Coliforms
• Bacillus
• Proteus
• Pseudomonas Bethnal Green McDonald’s
• Coliforms
• Micrococcus
• Bacillus
• Psedomonas

Birmingham, Ramp McDonald’s

• Coliforms
• Pseudomonas, E. faecalis, proteus sp, enterobacter and bacillus.
• Enterococcus faecalis
• Proteus
• Enterobacter
• Bacillus

You would think this is enough to put customers off for life, but from this video McDonald’s regulars seem unfazed.

IMAGE CREDIT: Wikipedia