Have you ever stopped to think about how many germs are hiding on your hands right now?
From the door button you just used to the phone you just answered, your hands are always coming into contact with bacteria and viruses. That’s why it’s so important to wash your hands to keep your hygiene up and stop the spread of sickness. But do you know how to wash your hands the right way?
How long do you need to scrub?
Should you use warm water or cold?
And what about antibacterial hand soap?
I’ll answer these questions and more in this piece so you can keep your hands clean and healthy. So, let’s dive in and find out how to wash your hands properly.
Hand Washing for Hygiene
Hand washing is a simple but effective way to stop germs and diseases from spreading. Germs can spread from one person to another or from a surface to a person if you touch your eyes, nose, or mouth without washing your hands, make or eat food or drinks without washing your hands, or come into contact with someone who is sick.
One of the best ways to get rid of germs, avoid getting sick, and keep others from getting sick is to wash your hands often.
Why is Hand Washing Important?
By washing your hands well with soap and water, you can help stop the spread of germs that cause diseases, like bacteria and viruses. Some stomach and lung infections can lead to major problems, especially in young children, the elderly, and people with weak immune systems.
Good hand washing is the first line of defense against the spread of many illnesses, from the common cold to more dangerous infections, such as meningitis and bronchiolitis.
How to Wash Your Hands Properly?
Follow these easy steps to wash your hands right:
- Wet your hands with clean, running water (warm or cold).
- Apply soap and lather your hands by rubbing them together with the soap. Be sure to lather the backs of your hands, between your fingers, and under your nails.
- Scrub your hands for at least 20 seconds.
- Rinse your hands well under clean, running water.
- Dry your hands using a clean towel or air dry them.
When to Wash Your Hands?
Handwashing is important because:
- Before, during, and after preparing food.
- Before eating.
- After using the toilet.
- After blowing your nose, coughing, or sneezing.
- After touching an animal, animal feed, or animal waste.
- After handling garbage.
- After caring for someone who is sick.
Why is Proper Hand Washing Essential?
To stop the spread of germs and illnesses, you must wash your hands properly. Germs from hands that haven’t been washed can spread to other things, like handles, table tops, or toys, and then to the hands of someone else.
By washing your hands, you can get rid of germs that can cause diarrhea, lung infections, skin and eye infections, and even blood poisoning.
What Happens if You Don’t Wash Your Hands Properly?
If your hands aren’t clean, they can make food unsafe and spread diseases from one person to the next. Washing your hands often could cut the chance of getting diarrhea by up to 30%. Airborne illnesses like the cold, flu, chickenpox, and measles can spread when you don’t wash your hands or talk to people who haven’t.
E coli is a bacteria that can cause diarrhea, stomach pain, sickness, and vomiting.
You can also get it by eating spoiled meat or not washing your hands well enough.
Why Soap and Water is the Ultimate Hand Washing Technique
When it comes to keeping our hands clean, there’s no denying that soap and water is the ultimate technique. But why is it so effective? Well, it all comes down to the science behind it.
Soap works by breaking down the outer layer of viruses and bacteria, making them easier to wash away.
Water then helps to rinse away any remaining germs, leaving your hands clean and fresh.
But it’s not just about the science – using soap and water is also incredibly easy and accessible.
You don’t need any fancy equipment or expensive products – just some soap and a sink.
Plus, it’s a technique that’s been around for centuries, so you know it’s tried and tested.
So next time you’re wondering how to keep your hands clean, remember that soap and water is the way to go.
It’s simple, effective, and best of all, it’s something we can all do to help keep ourselves and those around us healthy.
For more information:
Clean Hands: Soap and Water Basics
Proper Hand Washing Techniques
Handwashing is an essential practice to avoid the spread of germs and illnesses. There are three different ways to wash your hands: the social way, the antiseptic way, and the medical way. No matter what kind of handwashing you do, there are a few easy steps to take to clean your hands well and stop the spread of illness.
Types of Handwashing Techniques
Most people wash their hands in a social setting to get rid of dirt and other things on their hands. It is the kind of handwashing that we do every day, like before we eat or after we go to the bathroom.
Antiseptic handwashing is done to remove or kill germs on the hands.
It is often used in health care areas to keep infections from spreading.
Surgical handwashing is the strictest way to wash your hands, and doctors do it before every surgery.
Before a sterile treatment, this is done to get rid of as many germs as possible on the hands.
Steps for Proper Handwashing
Follow these easy steps to wash your hands right:
- Wet your hands with clean running water (warm or cold).
- Lather up your hands with soap and rub them together for at least 20 seconds. Be sure to lather the backs of your hands, between your fingers, and under your nails.
- Rinse your hands well under running water.
- Turn off the water with your elbow.
- Dry your hands with a clean towel or air dry them.
When to Wash Your Hands
It is important to wash your hands whenever they look dirty, before and after making food, before eating, before and after being around someone who is sick, before and after treating a cut, sore, or wound, and after using the toilet or changing diapers.
If you can’t find soap and water, you can clean your hands with a hand cleaner that has at least 60% alcohol.
Why Use Soap?
When you wash your hands, it’s important to use soap because it works better than just water. Soap’s surfactants clear dirt and germs from the skin. When people use soap, they also tend to scrub their hands more thoroughly, which gets rid of even more germs.
It is also important to scrub the whole hand, including under the nails, because germs are on every part of the hand.
Additional Tips
To avoid getting sick again, you should use a towel to turn off the tap and open the bathroom door after you wash your hands. If you don’t have soap and water handy, you can use a hand cleaner with at least 60% alcohol if you don’t have soap and water.
Hand Washing Dos and Don’ts
Water Temperature
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) say that the same number of germs are removed from your hands by both warm and cold water. The water helps make soap lather that removes germs from your skin when you wash your hands.
Most of the time, water doesn’t kill germs on its own.
For water to kill germs, it would have to be hot enough to burn your hands.
So, the temperature of the water used to wash hands should be based on how it feels rather than how well it kills germs.
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) says that hot water comfortable enough for washing hands is not hot enough to kill bacteria, but is more effective than cold water because it removes oils from the hand that can harbor bacteria.
But a 2017 study from Rutgers University found that cold or lukewarm water could work just as well.
The same study also found that the amount of soap used and how long it takes to wash your hands are more important than the temperature of the water for getting rid of germs.
Length of Time
People don’t wash their hands long enough when they wash them, which is one of the most common mistakes. Experts say that you should wash your hands with soap and water for at least 20 seconds. A recent study found that 95% of people do not wash their hands long enough to properly kill germs.
You can sing the “Happy Birthday” song twice to make sure you wash your hands long enough.
Soap
Another common mistake is not using soap at all. Some people don’t use soap when they wash their hands because they don’t think it makes much of a difference. However, soap is important for removing dirt, oils, and bacteria from your hands.
Even with running water, germs can stick to your hands if you don’t use soap.
When to Wash Your Hands
Another common mistake is to not wash your hands when you should. According to some studies, about 1 in 10 people don’t wash their hands after using the bathroom. It’s also important to wash your hands before and after making food, after blowing your nose, coughing, or sneezing, and after touching an animal, animal feed, or animal waste.
Other Tips
Follow these steps to make sure you’re washing your hands well:
- Wet your hands with clean running water
- Apply soap
- Lather your hands by rubbing them together with the soap
- Scrub all surfaces of your hands, including the backs of your hands, between your fingers, and under your nails
- Rinse your hands well under clean running water
- Dry your hands using a clean towel or air dry them
Other common mistakes are missing a spot, not drying your hands fully, and not cleaning your hand towels often enough. By doing and not doing these things when you wash your hands, you can keep them clean and stop the spread of germs and illnesses.
When to Wash Your Hands
Key Times to Wash Your Hands
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) says that you should wash your hands when you are most likely to get sick or share germs. These important times are:
- Before, during, and after preparing food
- Before and after eating food
- Before and after caring for someone at home who is sick with vomiting or diarrhea
- Before and after treating a cut or wound
- After blowing your nose, coughing, or sneezing
- After touching an animal, animal feed, or animal waste
- After handling pet food or pet treats
- After touching garbage
By washing your hands at these key times, you can help avoid the spread of germs and keep yourself and others healthy.
How to Wash Your Hands Properly
The CDC says you should do these five things to wash your hands right:
1. Run clean, warm or cold water over your hands and turn off the tap.
2. Put soap on your hands and make suds by rubbing them together.
3. Lather the backs of your hands, in between your fingers, and under your nails.
4. Scrub your hands for 20 seconds or more.
5. Rinse your hands well under clean, running water and dry them with a clean towel or let them air dry.
If you can’t find soap and water, you can clean your hands with a hand cleaner that has at least 60% alcohol.
It’s important to wash your hands fully by following these steps to ensure that you remove all germs and bacteria from your hands.
How Often Should You Wash Your Hands?
There is no set number of times a day that you should wash your hands. Instead, it’s about washing your hands when you should and making sure they are clean. If you cook food for your family or take care of a sick child, you may need to wash your hands more often.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) says that you should wash your hands often, especially when you are most likely to get sick or share germs. Germs can spread from one person to another and in our communities, like your house, workplace, school, or daycare center, if people don’t wash their hands.
One of the best ways to keep yourself and other people from getting sick is to wash your hands. By washing your hands at important times and in the right way, you can help keep yourself and others healthy and stop germs from spreading.
Remember to wash your hands fully and often, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Keep yourself safe and wash your hands!
Hand Sanitizer Benefits
When to Wash Your Hands
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) say that you should wash your hands often, especially when you are likely to get or share germs. These important times are:
- Before, during, and after preparing food
- After blowing your nose, coughing, or sneezing
- After touching an animal, animal feed, or animal waste
- After handling pet food or pet treats
- After touching garbage
How to Wash Your Hands
Follow these five steps to wash your hands right:
1. Run clean, warm or cold water over your hands.
2. Stop the water flow and use soap.
3. Rub your hands together with the soap to make suds. Lather the backs of your hands, in between your fingers, and under your nails.
4. Scrub your hands for 20 seconds or more.
5. Wash your hands well with clean water that is running. Use a clean towel or an air dryer to dry your hands.
Some germs on the skin can be killed by hand sanitizers. This makes them an important tool for stopping the spread of dangerous diseases. Hand sanitizers can kill 99.9% of the germs on your hands if you use them the right way.
The CDC recommends using hand sanitizers with at least 60% alcohol to avoid getting sick and sharing germs to others.
Hand sanitizers are also easy to use and don’t take as much time as washing your hands. They are easier to get than soap and water, which makes them a good choice when you are on the go. Hand sanitizers can also improve the appearance of the skin on hands, making them feel softer.
To make sure hand sanitizers work, it’s important to use them the right way. Rub the sanitizer into your hands until they feel totally dry, making sure to get in between your fingers and on the backs of your hands.
Hand sanitizers should not be used on obviously dirty or greasy hands, as they may not be effective in removing harmful chemicals or certain kinds of germs.
Closing remarks and recommendations
In the end, washing your hands is a simple but effective way to stop the spread of germs and diseases.
However, it’s not just about the technique, it’s about the attitude.
We need to stop seeing hand washing as a chore and start seeing it as a way to take care of ourselves and the people around us.
By keeping ourselves clean, we also take care of the people around us.
Think about it: When was the last time you washed your hands and really thought about what you were doing? When was the last time you thought about how lucky you are to be able to wash your hands and keep from getting sick?
Let’s not forget to wash our hands.
Let’s make it a daily habit that keeps us healthy and shows how much we care about those around us.
So the next time you wash your hands, think about how powerful clean hands are and how they affect the world.
Looking for a new Automatic soap dispenser?
Choosing a gadget can be very difficult if you know nothing about the technology.
Some will pay for features they do not need while others may not consider what they really want.
So I created this quick, newbie guide to help you focus on what is really important to you:
The Best Automatic Soap Dispenser (For You!)
How to Make Your Own Foaming Hand Soap
Tip: Turn on the caption button if you need it. Choose ‘automatic translation’ in the settings button if you are not familiar with the english language. You may need to click on the language of the video first before your favorite language becomes available for translation.
Links and references
- Training Manual on Hygiene and Sanitation Promotion and Community Mobilization for Volunteer Community Health Promoters (VCHP)
- “Hand Hygiene” published on StatPearls
- “A review of hand-washing techniques in primary care and community settings”
- “Indications and Techniques for Hand Hygiene” published by the National Health Service (NHS) in Scotland.
- usaid.gov
- cdc.gov
- enviro-master.com
- jan-pro.com
My article on the topic:
Hygienic Hand Washing: Proper Steps & Benefits
To-do for myself: (Article status: specification)
