Why It’s Not Enough to Wash Your Hands
Studies show that most Americans don’t wash their hands properly and many don’t wash them at all! Here’s why it’s especially important to wash your hands every single time.
It’s the #1 Way to Prevent the Spread of Disease
With the flu season in full swing and the Coronavirus dominating the news lately, there’s a lot of talk about how to prevent the spread of germs and keep our families safe.
The CDC, politicians, and the World Health Organization all say that the number one way to protect ourselves for illness is to wash hands regularly — which sounds like common sense advice.
When I wrote this post about how our family is preparing for the coronavirus outbreak, I got quite a few responses telling me that was silly…all we need to do is wash our hands!
I’ll agree with you that hand washing is crucial. No argument there.
However, washing your hands doesn’t do as much good when the rest of the population ISN’T washing theirs!
And no matter what everyone says…the majority of them either aren’t washing or aren’t doing it correctly.
So I’m here to make a plea — wash your dang hands people!!
Studies Show Almost Half of Americans DON’T Wash their Hands After Using the Restroom
Let that sink in…
There are people that use the toilet and then leave without washing their hands.
LOTS of them.
We all know we’re supposed to do it — 92% of Americans say they think it is important to wash their hands after using the restroom.
However, according to a recent survey conducted by Bradley Corporation (which makes hand washing products), barely half actually do!
To be exact, only 66% of the survey participants said that they actually DO wash their hands after using the restroom. Even more disturbing, about 70% admit that they sometimes skip the soap and simply rinse their hands with water.
I see it ALL the time in the ladies room.
People…adding water to germy hands only does one thing…
Makes the germs wet.
As the Global Handwashing Partnership explains, “handwashing with soap is substantially more effective at cleaning your hands than handwashing with water alone.”
Other researchers turned up even grosser results…
A 2000 study revealed that only 49% of New Yorkers observed washed their hands after using public restrooms at Grand Central and Penn stations.
Just imagine how many people go through those terminals every day. Now imagine touching anything in those bathrooms and NOT scrubbing your hands with tons of soap afterwards.
What is going on here?!
Hand Washing Only Works if We ALL Do It
Washing your own hands makes a difference for sure! But that alone isn’t enough.
We ALL have to do it.
If YOU wash your hands, but other people DON’T…and they spread their germs everywhere, you’re not going to be as safe as you think you are. Those germs are still getting spread and you’re still going to be at risk for picking them up in between your hand washings.
No excuses people.
Just wash your hands. Every single time. With soap.
According to the CDC, here are the times when hand washing is a must:
- Before, during, and after preparing food
- Before eating
- Before and after caring for a sick person
- Before and after treating a wound
- After using the restroom
- After changing a diaper or helping a child use the restroom
- After blowing your nose, coughing, or sneezing
- After touching an animal, feeding an animal, or cleaning animal waste
- After handling garbage
Don’t want coronavirus?
Wash your hands!!
Don’t want the flu?
Wash your hands!!
Don’t want to get a stomach bug?
Wash your hands!!
Don’t want your kids to get sick?
Wash your hands!!
Don’t talk about it…be about it. If we all wash the right way, all the time, it will go a long way towards keeping everyone (including our own families) healthier.
How to Wash Your Hands the Right Way
Believe it or not, only about 5% of adults wash their hands correctly! Do you?
It’s pretty simple! According to the CDC, here’s how to wash your hands properly:
- Get your hands wet.
- Add soap.
- Lather, making sure to scrub between fingers, backs of hands, and fingernails.
- Wash hands for at least 20 seconds (this is important!)
- Rinse.
- Dry.
Step #2 is a big one…SOAP! Water + Soap is where the magic happens! But you also have to spend enough time washing for it to be effective. A quick rinse (even with soap) is still going to leave some germs behind.
Always always always wash your hands, with soap, for at least 20 seconds. There’s just no reason not to do it!
I created this glitter germy hands experiment to show my kids how to wash their hands — and how easily germs spread. It’s definitely a good refresher and fun to do as a family!
Let’s do this y’all!!
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