National Handwashing Awareness Week is the first full week of December. We’re taught at young ages that we need to wash our hands before sitting down for dinner, but we need to remember that germs don’t hibernate in between our meals. We keep our hands clean to prevent illness and the spread of germs. In the era of coronavirus it’s more crucial than ever to be diligent about proper hand hygiene.
The experts recommend washing hands with clean water and soap for a minimum of 20 seconds. Make sure to clean in between your fingers, underneath your fingernails, and the backs of your hands. The best way I have found to clean underneath the fingernails is to lather the palm of your hand and scrub the soap under the nails. Then dry your hands with a clean towel.
“The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention calls hand washing “a do-it-yourself vaccine” and suggests remembering five easy steps: Wet, lather, scrub, rinse, dry.” National Today
There are “Four Principles of Hand Awareness” endorsed by the American Medical Association and American Academy of Family Physicians. These four principles are as follows:
1. Wash hands when dirty and before eating
2. Don’t cough into hands
3. Don’t sneeze into hands
4. Don’t put fingers in mouth, nose, or eyes
“How do hand sanitizers work differently than handwashing?
Alcohol-based hand sanitizers work by killing germs on your hands, while washing your hands with soap and water removes germs from your hands. Handwashing will remove all types of germs from your hands, but hand sanitizers are not able to kill all types of germs or remove harmful chemicals like pesticides and heavy metals.” CDC
Taking the time to properly wash your hands reduces respiratory viruses by 16-21%. Keep yourself and your loved ones safe this winter by staying conscientious of your hand washing habits.
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