Handwashing

Benefits of Handwashing

Is the hype about hand washing true or is it an overreaction?

Washing hands after any activity is the perfect way to keep away from diseases. It is the oldest and most simple step one can take in order to ensure prevention of bacterial infections or spread of infections from person to person. Many people ignore the importance of hand washing, but this is a message that is worth repeating.

Washing your hands properly is one of the most important thing you can do to help prevent and control the spread of many illnesses. Good hand hygiene will reduce the risk of things like flu and other communicable infections being passed from person to person.

Once a person is infected, it’s only a matter of time before that the people around also get infected. Hand Hygiene is the first line of defense against the spread of various infections. Handwashing is an underrated technique of saving yourself a trip to the hospital. It is like self-vaccinating against infectious diseases.

What are the most important situations in daily life when you must wash your hands?

It is best to keep your hands clean at all times and make sure you take the necessary precautions at certain times, for instance, if you are down with the flu, ensure to carry a tissue/hanky to avoid the spread of germs to your hands and the surroundings. Use clean running water to wash your hands. Daily, we perform various activities that require us to wash hands before and after performing the activity. Examples of such activities include the following:

1. Before and after cooking food
2. Before and after eating food
3. After using the toilet
4. After sneezing or coughing
5. After touching or taking out the garbage
6. After touching an animal or its feed
7. After and before treating a wound
8. After cleaning around the house
9. After visiting a sick person in the hospital
10. After smoking

What is the best way for hand hygiene?

As per recommendations, the best way to get rid of germs is Washing your Hands. However, in case of the absence of water and soap you can use sanitizers which contain alcohol to kill the germs. Sanitizers are the easy and modern way to washing hands that most people use now.

How handwashing works with soap and water and with a hand sanitizer?

The primary purpose of a hand soap is to remove the bacteria and germs and not kill germs, whereas a sanitizer kills the infectious germs. When washing your hands with soap and water the germs get trapped in the natural oils of the skin and get washed away with water. On the other hand, sanitizer kills bacteria by making it ineffective. In any case, if you have access to water and soap, it is best to follow the traditional means of handwashing. Alcohol-based hand sanitizers are acceptable in cases when water and soap aren’t available as they are for on the go cleaning.

How to wash your hands using water and soap?

It is important to wash your hands properly. Make sure that you wash both your hands including the tips of your fingers, the palms of your hands and thumbs.

Do you have to use medicated soap, or ordinary soap will do the job?

Using a soap is much more beneficial than just washing hands with water. It is always recommended to use a liquid soap instead of a bar soap as bar soaps, when used by many people tend to get infected or its impact wades off. Some people, however, tend to have skin irritation caused by soap. Such people may need to use soaps that have a different pH and are rather mild.

All soaps are equally effective in killing germs, provided proper and effective handwashing techniques are followed. There is no need to use a specific anti-bacterial or medical soap for this purpose.

Can Sanitizers also kill the good bacteria and harm skin?

It is true that hand sanitizers kill not only the bad but also the good bacteria which live on the skin acting as the first line of defense against germs. Presence of these good bacteria is important as they prevent and protect the skin from major injury. The absence of these bacteria on the skin causes skin inflammation.

Sanitizer does not necessarily harm the skin, although alcohol-based sanitizers may harm and cause skin irritation in those who have sensitive skin.

What are some of the dirtiest things we touch daily?

We touch many items in our daily lives, without realizing how swarming with bacteria they are. The first thought to cross anybody’s mind would be toilet seat, however apart from that, there are various other objects we encounter in a daily basis that may cause infections. Some of them as below:

1. Sponges used in cleaning utensils
2. Mobile phones
3. Doorknobs and handles
4. Faucets
5. Remotes
6. Laptops, keyboards, telephones
7. Hand towels in the bathroom
8. Toothbrush holder

Unfortunately, some adults ignore the importance of hand washing and set a wrong example to children. Many times, children do not listen to parents when they are asked to clean their hands before eating, after using the toilet or when they come home after playing. It is an instruction worth repeating to children as it is a simple and the easy way to keep away infections.