Coffee Mugs and Microbugs

The office coffee break: a time to relax and enjoy a hot, steaming cup of coffee -- and bacteria? Your office (or school) may be encouraging you to use reusable mugs instead of disposable cups. A well intentioned idea, but not a very good one, according to public-health experts. Surprisingly, many people don't realize that drinking from a reusable coffee mug instead of a disposable cup has sanitary tradeoffs.

Fact is, most people don't or can't take the time away from work to clean coffee mugs properly -- they just give them a quick rinse. To properly sanitize a mug, it should be washed thoroughly and then rinsed for 30 seconds in water of 170 degrees F or more. The tap water in office sinks and rest rooms rarely gets that hot. A good detergent should also be used -- something many offices don't have on hand. Sink areas in washrooms and office kitchens often harbor bacteria since so few workers bother to clean up after use. Over time -- due to lack of proper cleaning -- grime, residue and bacteria accumulate on the cup. Also, office workers can often mishandle their cups, spreading germs from dirty hands. Cups are frequently used by more than one person and not properly cleaned.

The results of a recent study confirm this. Public-health officials in Grande Prairie in Alberta, Canada tested reusable mugs from four government offices, including the Health Department itself, and found high concentrations of bacteria. "There is a one in three chance (33 percent) that people in our study will drink from a reusable coffee cup with a bacteria count greater than 100 colonies [the National Research Council's minimum sanitation standard]," noted one official. "The conversion from disposable cups to reusable cups in office environments would markedly decrease the sanitation level of utensils....This would increase the potential for the spread of disease between people."

A better idea than using a reusable coffee mug at work or school is to use a disposable cup. Public health experts recognize the sanitary benefits of disposable cups and other single-service products. With disposables, you don't have to worry about the bacteria problem (or have to spend time away from your work washing your cup in the sink!), because each cup is new and fresh.

Sources:
- Heather Pringle, "Bugs in the Mugs," Eating Well magazine, July/August 1992.
- Public Health Inspector Jacqueline L. Schnider of the South Peace Health Unit, Grande Prairie, Alberta, Canada, quoted by Charles Felix in "Sanitation and Family-Health Update" column, Single Service News, January/February 1992.

Germs are brewing in office coffee cups

TUCSON, Ariz. -- Here's a real jolt for coffee drinkers:

Researchers say there's a good chance that your office coffee mug is crawling with critters.

Some of the tiny troublemakers are harmless, and some aren't. Some are scary ones like E. coli.

The germ population is booming because people don't carefully wash out cups or disinfect sinks and preparation areas in most offices.

After learning about the tests, Gabriela Rico, a Pima County court worker who identified herself as a coffee drinker, had a change of heart.

"I take that back," Rico said. "I'm not a coffee drinker any more."
Charles Gerba and Ralph Meer, of the University of Arizona, tested dishes, sinks, cups, dishrags, sponges, counters and spoons in offices in Tucson.

The culprits are sponges and rags in coffee areas. Forty percent had coliforms.

One strain lives in the intestines of cattle and can cause diarrhea in humans who eat contaminated meat.

Gerba said he also examined mugs at radio stations in Detroit and California. "They probably had the grodiest coffee cups I've ever seen," he said.

By Arthur H. Rotstein / Associated Press
Copyright 1998, The Detroit News dated 2 April 98

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Last modified: August 16, 1998