Life is Better with Clean Hands is a campaign from the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) for good reasons!
- Germs are on everything we touch. Some cause disease.
- Handwashing with soap and water is a healthy habit to protect both you and your family from getting sick.
- Handwashing prevents about 30% of diarrhea-related sickness.
- Handwashing prevents about 20% of respiratory infections such as colds.
The CDC recommends peak time to wash our hands. These include:
- After using the bathroom or changing a diaper
- Before eating
- Before, during, and after preparing food
- After touching raw meat, poultry, seafood, and eggs
- After blowing your nose, coughing, or sneezing
- After being in a public space and before touching the face
Here are 5 easy steps to properly wash your hands from the CDC:
- Wash with running water and soap
- Lather beyond your wrists
- Wash your wrists, palms, backs of hands, fingers, and under fingernails
- Rub the lather in for at least 20 seconds or sing Happy Birthday twice
- Rinse thoroughly with running water and dry completely with air, clean towel, or paper towel
If soap and water are not available, use an alcohol-based hand sanitizer that contains at least 60% alcohol.
Because handwashing is easy, inexpensive, and effective, it is one of the best ways to protect you and those you love from getting sick and spreading illness to others. Life really is better with clean hands!
For more information, go to https://www.cdc.gov/handwashing