10:38 PM PDT on Thursday, May 4, 2006

By ERIC WILKINSON / KING 5 News

To most women, a purse is a constant companion, a traveling partner they take everywhere.

KING

Purses can easily become carriers of disease.

But when those purses pick up unseen, uninvited guests, they can become carriers of disease.

Researchers at the University of Arizona tested dozens of women's purses and found 30 percent of them coated with fecal bacteria - that's human and animal waste.

Some purses are 100 times dirtier than the average toilet seat.

It’s disgusting, but not surprising and it's not so much what's on your purse or briefcase that has researchers concerned as much as it is where it all ends up.

Researchers say the trouble starts when a purse that has been placed on the floor of a restroom is then put on a table or counter.

“So basically they could be picking up fecal bacteria or viruses on the floors of public restrooms and moving them to their homes - on the countertops where they might make a sandwich or prepare other food,” said Prof. Charles Gerba of the University of Arizona.

While the chances of actually getting sick from a polluted purse are slim, researchers say people should clean their purses, backpacks and briefcases with disinfectant wipes once a week.

“Basically, you're always gambling with germs. The idea is to keep the odds in your favor,” said Gerba.

Gerba says one of the dirtiest things you can touch is a supermarket shopping cart. His tests found more than 50 percent contaminated with, among other things, bodily fluids.