How to flush the toilet without touching the flush lever.

If you are in a public toilet and the flushing mechanism is that which requires you to flush with your hand, you don't want to be touching the lever with your hand. There is no knowing what germs and other microscopic creepy crawlies you might catch. Besides germs, there is bound to be some lavatorial residue on the lever left behind by the previous user. What then is the best thing to do?