One of the major lessons the coronavirus pandemic has taught us over the past 2 years is that hygiene and cleanliness massively affect our health and safety when fighting viruses and diseases. Germs spread so fast and easily whenever we touch different items and surfaces most especially when we are in public places. It is wise to always bring hand sanitizers and disinfectant wipes, but nothing can beat the importance and benefits of handwashing.
With the pandemic still affecting us even today, the most essential skill we should learn and apply is how to properly wash our hands. Apart from constantly disinfecting everything with rubbing alcohol or other antibacterial products, scientifically speaking, handwashing with soap reduces the likelihood of being infected with the coronavirus by 36%. While sanitizers and disinfectants do help, they don’t get rid of all types of germs. There are also dirts and other chemicals that they can’t remove, so handwashing is still highly recommended by medical professionals. It is not enough to do it once a day, we must make sure to wash our hands frequently, most especially in these situations:
- If you’re cooking, wash your hands before, during, and after preparing food
- Before and after eating
- Before and after treating a wound
- When tending to sick people at home, wash your hands before and after caring for them
- Before coughing, sneezing, or blowing your nose
- Before touching your eyes
- After taking out the trash or touching garbage
- After using the toilet
- Before and after caring for your little ones at home, whether when changing diapers, tending to them after using the toilet, or feeding them
It’s surprising how good handwashing still isn’t common knowledge to most people, so to bring awareness to Handwashing Day today, here are a few tips for you to practice. Make sure to take notes so you can teach these to your family, kids, and friends!
- Did you know that proper hand washing should last 20 seconds long? Try singing the Happy Birthday song twice as your timer while washing your hands.
- It’s not just your palms that need cleaning – the gaps between your fingers, the back of your hands, the space under your nails are important too so make sure to clean them well!
- A key factor to ensuring your handwashing is effective is the soap you use. Having liquid soap pump dispensers in your washing areas is efficient, and if you use a liquid soap that assures protection from 99.9% of germs and bacteria, you hit two birds with one stone!
- Make sure to rinse your hands well with a clean towel once the 20 seconds is up and you’re good to go!
While sanitizers and disinfectants are readily available everywhere, I hope that we remember this Handwashing Day 2022 how important it is that we wash our hands to fight germs, viruses, and diseases. Taking just 20 seconds at time throughout the day to practice good hand washing can massively help us be safer and healthier in these trying times. Not only will it benefit you, but it can also help protect your family and friends. Make sure to practice these tips and share them with your loved ones so we can all lead a safer and healthier lifestyle!
