>As a preschool teacher I ran across health info that was new to me.
>Anyhow, it seems that toilet paper rolls can carry traces of bacteria
>(fecal bacteria) and it has some long terrible name I can't remember....
>started with an E.  Anyway, a teacher said that a whole class became
>horribly ill from using them in an art project.  Everyone handled the
>guilty tube or passed it on by contact....
 
This couldn't be more wrong!  I am speaking as a representative of the
paper industry.  If you saw what goes into making paper you wouldn't have a
doubt in your mind that it would kill all bacteria in processing - the pulp
is boiled, steamed in the papermaking process at such temperatures as to be
high enough to kill a man, not to mention bacteria.  If it is a new roll of
paper that you have gotten the tube from it should be fine.  Of course
ANYTHING that is handled after the fact can carry contamination.  Chances
are a child with unclean hands touched that roll, if in fact that was the
cause of others being sick, how would the teacher know this for a fact?
[Posted in FML issue 2488]