Mycobacterium Avium Found In Shower-Heads: Study

September 16th, 2009 - 11:56 am ICT by GD  

By Madhuri Dey
wwwreuterscom2Taking a shower after a hefty days work might not be that good for you as recent studies have revealed that many shower heads aren’t clean enough and can cover you with unwanted bacterial germs known as Mycobacterium Avium which can make you fall sick.

Using high tech instruments and modern scientific methodologies, a research that was carried on 50 shower heads from nine US cities was found that at about 30 percent of the shower-heads nurtured high levels of Mycobacterium Avium - a group of bacteria that might cause lung infections when inhaled or swallowed. According to the sources, researchers from the University of Colorado at Boulder reportedly discovered that the levels of the Mycobacterium Avium were as many as 100 times higher than those which are found in house hold water, thereby raising concerns regarding the cleanliness of shower-heads.

“If you are getting a face full of water when you first turn your shower on, that means you are probably getting a particularly high load of Mycobacterium Avium, which may not be to healthy,” said researcher Norman Pace in a given statement. Mycobacterium Avium on swallowing or inhaling may lead to pulmonary diseases causing persistent cough, breathlessness and fatigue. These group of bacterias affects those who have a compromised immune system, and seldom infects healthy people.

Norman Pace said that the National Jewish Center in Denver discovered that the gradual increase in the pulmonary infections in United States recently from mycobacteria species such as Mycobacterium Avium can be due to the reason that the people are indulging themselves into more showers and fewer baths.

Further research is being carried out to find the bacteria levels in household utensils.

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