Since the start of the coronavirus outbreak, health authorities have been begging us to pay attention to our hand hygiene — and for a good reason.
Washing your hands frequently with soap and water is one of the cheapest forms of infection control, and also one of the most effective.
Why?
Well, when you wash your hands, you surround any microorganisms on your skin with soap molecules. The soap molecules essentially push the microorganisms apart and destabilise their function. This then makes them harmless to your body and reduces the risk of spreading germs to others (yay!).
But research has shown that 95% of people do not wash their hands thoroughly enough to kill germs. Even more, one in three hand-washers don’t use soap, and one in ten people don’t wash their hands at all (eek!).
So, how do we wash our hands properly?
There are seven key steps to follow. They are:
1. Wet your hands and apply enough soap (a coin size amount of soap is good!).
2. Rub your palms together.
3. Rub the back of each hand.
4. Rub both your hands while interlocking your fingers.
5. Rub the backs and tips of your fingers.
6. Rub your thumbs and the ends of your wrists.
7. Rinse both hands properly with water.
The recommended hand washing time is at least 20 seconds, so make sure you complete all of the steps and don’t rush through them!
Once your hands have been appropriately rinsed with water, you should then dry them with a clean, disposable paper towel.
And that’s it! Give yourself a little cheer for helping to prevent the spread of germs!