You could be getting more than some quick cash the next time you visit your neighborhood ATM.

How about influenza, salmonella or E. coli?

ATMs and the money they dispense are just some of the things we touch each day that carry germs, according to researchers.

Germs are lurking everywhere: in the supermarket, on elevator buttons and on the office refrigerator.

And some of them can hang around for a while, said Dr. Carrie DeLone, physician general of the Pennsylvania Department of Health.

“It depends on the virus,” she said. “Some are fairly hardy.”

The Dirty Money Project at New York University found dollar bills can carry 3,000 types of bacteria. In addition, paper money can hold the flu virus for up to 17 days, according to research.

“Money has a lot of germs. It changes hands frequently,” DeLone said.

Germs and viruses survive only a few hours on hard surfaces, such as doorknobs or shopping carts, but those are often touched multiple times in those few hours, especially during the holiday shopping season.

“Anything a lot of people touch is an issue,” DeLone said.

Offices are among the germiest of public places.

Researchers at the University of Arizona found many office surfaces can become infected when just one person comes to work sick.

The speed at which the flu virus traveled surprised even the researchers.

“Within four hours after placing a tracer virus on the doorknob to the entrance to the office, half of the surfaces and half of the people's hands in the office were contaminated with the virus,” said Dr. Charles Gerba, who conducted the study along with fellow University of Arizona researcher Kelly Reynolds.

Gerba, an environmental microbiologist and professor of microbiology and environmental sciences, is known as Dr. Germ for his decades-long studies of germs.

Many people are usually cautious in public restrooms and, according to research from the University of Colorado, they have a reason to take precautions.

Researchers found 19 groups of bacteria, including staph, on doors, floors, faucet handles and toilets, among other surfaces.

And avoid the hand dryer. Garba said it just blows the airborne bacteria in the room into your face and onto your hands.

Dr. Elliot Smith, an internist in Evans City, said going to work and running errands while sick exacerbates the spread of germs and contamination of public places, mentioning restaurants, schools and cars.

He said people tend to be “stoic” when sick and will struggle off to work despite their illness.

“People need to think a little beyond themselves by not going out in public (when they are sick),” he said.

Although hand washing is “the common line of defense” in stopping the spread of germs, Rose Furrer, director of home health, home care and home tech with the Visiting Nurses Association in Butler County, said it is nearly impossible to eradicate every germ.

But hand washing, along with using tissues and hand sanitizers, can cut the risk of germs spreading.

In the University of Arizona office study, Garba and Reynolds found using tissues and hand sanitizers can cut the risk by more than 30 percent.

“We were surprised how effective they were considering that only half of the people in the office actually agreed to use (them),” he said.

If you do end up with the flu, health care professionals recommend rest, lots of liquids and a pain reliever for any fever.

“The most important thing is to keep hydrated, treat the fever and don't go to work or school,” DeLone said.

Tips to avoid getting sick this winter:• Get a flu shot• Frequent handwashing or sanitizing (especially after touching ATMs, money, shopping carts and other places where germs can linger)• If available, use a tissue when you cough or sneeze; if not, use the crook of your elbow• Frequently disinfect remote controls, phones and other commonly used household items