Soap and Water - Your Best Defense Against Germs!
If the worries of cold and flu season are leaving you feeling helpless, you'll be happy to hear that there is one easy way to stay healthy and avoid spreading germs - wash your hands. The Centers for Disease Control say that hand hygiene is one of the most important steps you can take to prevent illness and the transmission of disease.
Studies have shown that Americans do not practice optimal hand cleaning. The American Society for Microbiology found that fewer people actually washed their hands after using public restrooms than the percentage that reported they did. Research shows that less than 50% of people are likely to wash their hands after coughing or sneezing on their hands. Research does indicates that women wash their hands more frequently than men.
Rebecca Coulborn, M.P.H., clinical research study manager, Center for Social Epidemiology and Population Health at the University of Michigan School of Public Health has studied hand hygiene and comparisons between using soap and water and hand sanitizers. She says, "Hand hygiene is so important and so overlooked..It is important that we continue to educate people about how to wash and when to wash (their hands)."
It is very important to follow some basic guidelines when you wash your hands with soap and water. Get your hands wet. Cover your hands with soap, and away from the water, spend twenty to thirty seconds rubbing soap on your hands. The lather helps the loosening of microorganisms. Rub in between your fingers and clean well under your nails. Once you rinse your hands in a public restroom, it is suggested to use a dry paper towel to turn off the faucet. Coulborn reminds you to, "Make sure you dry your hands thoroughly. Pathogens like moisture."
When soap and water aren't available, a hand sanitizer is a good alternative. Coulborn advises that you need to read the label to make sure the sanitizer you purchase has an adequate amount of alcohol. The Food and Drug Administration recommends 60-95% alcohol content. Use a dime to quarter size amount in the palm of your hands and then rub your hands to cover all of your hands including in between your fingers. Keep rubbing until the alcohol dries. If you apply the right amount of hand sanitizer, it should take 10-15 seconds before your hands are dry.
If your hands are visibly soiled, hand sanitizer will not be able to clean them as well as soap and water.
Help prevent the spread of germs . . . wash your hands!
When to wash your hands:
Any time your hands are visibly soiled, you should wash them with soap and water, but often your hands are dirty even when they appear clean. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention remind you to wash your hands:
- Before preparing or eating food
- After going to the bathroom
- After changing diapers or cleaning up a child who has gone to the bathroom
- Before and after tending to someone who is sick
- After blowing your nose, coughing, or sneezing
- After handling an animal or animal waste
- After handling garbage
- Before and after treating a cut or wound
Visit the Centers for Disease Control web site to get more information about good hand hygiene.
For more information about fighting the flu and the importance of good hand hygiene visit Aiello Research Group.
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