Washing your hands can keep you healthy

washing hands

Washing your hands – the key to staying healthy

Germs are everywhere. Study by the National Sanitation Foundation identified:12,700,000 per square inch on drinking water fountain,33,800 per square inch on a cafeteria tray, 260 per square inch on a computer keyboard and 740 per square inch on ear phones.

The good news is that not all germs are harmful. In fact, most of them are harmless and some of them are good for us. However, it’s true that viruses and bacteria can lead to the common cold and flu, and more serious illnesses such as the food borne E. coli and Salmonella.1

Which is why hand washing is so important.

Every year, students in the U.S. miss an estimated 164 million days of school due to illness. According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) that number could be cut in half with proper hand washing.1  Hand washing has also been shown to be the single best way to prevent illness and the spread of disease.2

Hand washing works by cleansing the body from pathogens including bacteria and viruses. In everyday life, it prevents infection and illness from spreading between family members and sometimes, through a whole community.

The basic rule is to wash hands:2

  • before preparing food
  • after handling uncooked meat and poultry
  • before eating
  • after coughing, sneezing, or blowing one's nose into a tissue
  • after using the bathroom
  • after touching animals or anything in an animal's environment.

Using hand sanitizers to keep hands clean

Another option to keep hands free from harmful germs is the waterless ‘instant’ hand sanitizers. Alcohol based sanitizers act quickly and significantly reduce the number of germs on the skin.2  

References

  1. Millions of Germs and Bacteria Await Kids at School. NSF International. Sept 2005. Available at http://www.nsf.org/business/newsroom/press_release.asp?p_id=11321. Accessed September 2010  
  2. Wash Your Hands. Centers for Disease Control. Available at http://www.cdc.gov/Features/HandWashing/. Accessed September 2010.