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We all know to wash our hands after handling raw poultry. But next time you’ve just cruised down the interstate behind a truck full of chickens or Thanksgiving turkeys, you might want to wash your car. Because a study led by a team of Johns Hopkins scientists finds that tailgating such feathered cargo can significantly increase your exposure to poultry-borne bacteria. The report appeared in the very first issue of "The Journal of Infection and Public Health," which will publish research on the epidemiology, prevention and control of infectious disease.
In the study, test cars followed poultry trucks as they traveled from farm to slaughterhouse. After these road trips, researchers discovered that the interiors of cars that had their windows down were teeming with a wide variety of bacteria. And many of the bacteria were strains known to be resistant to several common antibiotics. In this age of avian influenza and antibiotic-resistant ‘superbugs,’ scientists are exploring all possible pathways of disease between humans and animals. This case shows just one way to keep from being exposed to pathogens that are truly foul.
—Adam Hinterthuer
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6 Comments
Add Commentwho rides behind a smelly chicken hauler with their windows down? really.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisIf your windows are closed --- the default setting for air flow through the heater/air conditioner is "Fresh air" for safety reasons. Some newer cars incorporate an air filter in that flow. It would be interesting to sample the filter after following a poultry truck, or for that matter any livestock hauler. And it might be a good idea to switch to "Recirculate" until you get away from the stinky hauler.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisI read where the ubiquitous dust particles generated by tire wear is a major polutant and potential carcenogen. Add to this the obvious dangers of collision, blowouts, enraged motorists, snipers, bored teens dropping bowling balls from overpasses, and now antibiotic resistant bacteria from poultry trucks ... wow!!! Maybe we should all just stay home more often and burn less of them nasty fossil fuels.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisThe problem with rolling up your window and recirculating the air is you have got to know you are behind a poultry truck. If a truck just passed and isn't visible or you don't see it in sufficient time rolling up would not work. If it is dangerous they should enclose the chickens in a way that keeps the dangerous particles away from the public.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisI used to have to drive by a chicken farm where I lived once....OMG! There is NOTHING that I know of that smells worse than chickens ESPECIALLY after a rain!
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisChickensh:t!
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