Handwashing: Quick, Simple, And Life-Saving

You were in elementary school the last time somebody bugged you about washing your hands, and you certainly don't want to go back there. You know that proper hygiene habits are important, so why would anyone need to remind you?

Everyone needs a refresher course sometimes. And let's admit that there are times you don't wash your hands before eating — especially when you grab a sandwich on the go. You may even sneakily neglect to wash your hands with soap and water after using the bathroom. Many people never even think about handwashing after visiting a public space and touching bacteria-ridden surfaces like shopping carts, the handles on a bus, or the attractions on a playground.

A Post-Covid Update

I'll admit one thing — when I first wrote this article, I remember feeling a little annoyed about having to cover something as basic and boring as handwashing. Indeed, I suspected that nobody else would be particularly interested in reading about handwashing, either. Oh, how things have changed! 

I was actually surprised that the CDC didn't recommend washing your hands after spending time in public spaces like malls, playgrounds, or even your workplace. Now, of course, their guidelines have been updated. You should also wash your hands before touching any part of your face, your mask, and before and after visiting a public area. If you touch anything other people might have also touched, it's important to wash your hands. 

As tired as we all are of the global pandemic, it seems like COVID is here to stay. Washing our hands remains a crucial part of protecting our health. Handwashing won't ever be boring to anyone, it seems. COVID might just have been the most effective "handwashing campaign" ever to have hit the world, and we're finally taking it seriously.

Unless you wash your hands with water and soap, your hands will quickly become a breeding ground for bacteria. You may not think much of your simple bar of soap, but it's actually more effective at protecting you from disease than any vaccine. If, that is, you use it regularly and at the right times.  

October 15 marks Global Handwashing Day. This important awareness event was originally created to get kids to wash their hands more often and properly, but it has since broadened its focus, because handwashing matters to everybody. Handwashing with soap is surprisingly uncommon in many developing countries, including Peru, Vietnam, Senegal and Tanzania. In these and other developing nations, handwashing saves lives. 

Washing your hands with soap and water prevents diarrheal and acute respiratory infections and clean hands will keep you and others in your community healthy. Being ill sucks even if it doesn't put your life in danger, and the germs on your dirty hands can have devastating effects on more vulnerable people like young children, senior citizens, and people with compromised immune systems. 

The power is in your dands — Use it!

The theme of this year's Global Handwashing Day is "the power is in your hands". It perfectly illustrates how such a simple act can make such a large difference. Not convinced? Here are the facts. 

The World Health Organization estimates that washing hands with soap and water reduces deaths related to diarrheal diseases by half, and research indicates that a million lives could be saved each year if everyone washed their hands routinely. 

Food borne disease outbreaks are often spread by contaminated hands. The simple act of washing your hands can prevent these and other infections.

Are you around a lot of people, leading to lots of contact with germs as well? You can keep your hands clean with an alcohol-based hand sanitizer even when you are on the go and don't have access to running water and soap. Research shows that this reduced illness-related absences among elementary students by nearly 20 percent. 

If you think death and disease don't affect you, here's another factoid for you: over half of all healthy people have Staphylococcus aureus living in their nose and throat, or on their skin. Your average person sheds 6 x 106 colony-forming units of this same bacterium. 

Handwashing: The Practical Know-How You Might Have Forgotten

So, when should you wash your hands?

You know about the most important handwashing moments — before dinner and after the toilet. Do you also consistently wash your hands before, during and after preparing food? Handwashing is especially important before and after preparing salads, which will not have the benefit the cooking process that would normally get rid of most bacteria. 

Sounds logical, doesn't it? But I bet not too many people do it.

Washing your hands after going to the bathroom speaks for itself. Don't forget to do the same after changing your (or another person's) baby's diaper, or helping an older child use the toilet. The same goes for blowing your nose or sneezing, or helping your child with these things. 

Do you use public transport, fast-food facilities, playgrounds, or hold on to shopping carts? Wash your hands! And never forget to wash your hands with soap and water after handling garbage or throwing it away. 

Contact-lens wearers should always wash their hands thoroughly before inserting their lenses or taking them out. The Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) also encourages you to wash your hands after touching pets.

Are you already a consistent handwasher? Congratulations!

You can do it! Put a (laminated) notice up near the sink so you remember.

Global Handwashing Day is also the ideal time to start a clean-hands campaign among your own kids, at your kids' school, and even at your workplace. Right, adults don't like to be reminded of something they really do know all about — but they might still need their memories jogged. 

How should you wash your hands?

• Use clean, running water to wet your hands. Use soap to make a real lather all over your hands (just holding the soap briefly won't do!), and don't forget to pay attention to your nails and the space between your fingers.
• To wash your hands properly, rub them together for a minimum of 20 seconds. 
• Once you're done, wash all the soap off under running water and dry your hands with a clean towel. Replace your bathroom towels frequently. If they are anywhere near the toilet, fecal bacteria will build up there. 

What should you do if you don't have clean water available? Use the water you do have, with soap. Alcohol-based hand sanitizers are a good alternative too. As with soap, they need to cover your entire hand-surface, including the top and the space between the fingers.