Stay Clean & Healthy on National Handwashing Week
If the last couple of years have taught us anything, it’s the importance of handwashing in regard to public health. Pandemic aside, handwashing should always be a high priority, especially this time of year when the cold and flu spread is rampant. Think of all the surfaces you touch throughout the day — not just at home, but at work or school, at the grocery store, or at the coffee shop or restaurant. How many doorknobs, countertops, and keypads have you touched? How many other people have touched those same surfaces? Did you know you’re bringing their germs along with you?
This National Handwashing Week, reduce the spread of seasonal illnesses by improving your handwashing habits. When you’re more conscious of your own personal hygiene, you help improve not just your own health, but the health of those around you.
Principles of Handwashing
According to the Henry the Hand Foundation, the four principles of handwashing, as endorsed by the American Medical Association and the American Academy of Family Physicians include the following:
- Wash your hands when they’re dirty and before eating
- Don’t cough into your hands
- Don’t sneeze into your hands
- Don’t put your fingers into your eyes, nose, or mouth
Proper Handwashing Techniques
Are you washing your hands in a way that effectively kills germs and prevents the spread of disease? According to the Centers for Disease Control, key times to wash hands can include:
- Before, during, and after preparing food
- Before and after eating
- Before and after caring for someone who is vomiting or has diarrhea
- Before and after treating an open wound
- After using the restroom
- After changing a child’s diaper or after helping a child use the restroom
- After blowing your nose, sneezing, or coughing
- After touching an animal, its food or treats, or its waste
- After handling garbage
To effectively eliminate germs, the CDC recommends five steps to follow while washing hands.
- Wet your hands with clean, running water, then turn off the water and apply soap.
- Lather your hands with soap. Cover your palms, the back of your hands, between your fingers, and underneath your fingernails with suds.
- Scrub your hands for at least 20 seconds. The CDC recommends singing the “Happy Birthday” song from beginning to end twice.
- Rinse your hands under clean, running water.
- Dry your hands using a clean towel, or air dry them.