Steps to Follow to Wash Your Hands Perfectly

Did you know that the Global Hand Washing Day is celebrated by UNICEF in India on October 15 of each year? It is important to raise awareness regarding the importance of personal hygiene in India because diarrhea is the number one cause of death for children below the age of 5 in our country and hand washing can lower the risk of this disease drastically. 

But is simply holding your hand under a tap with a little bit of soap enough? Is there any guarantee that all the germs will be eliminated? Is there a recommended way to clean one’s hands? The World Health Organization says that the hand washing process should last for the duration of the birthday song sung twice!

Step by Step Instructions for Washing Hands

1. Prepare a hand towel: This step can be used if you are using a public restroom. Make sure to get the hand towel ready from the dispenser, but do not yet remove it.
2. Wet: Place your hand underneath a faucet and get your hands wet. You can use warm or cold water but hot water must be avoided. After wetting both sides of the hands, apply a generous amount of soap or liquid available. Dettol liquid hand wash is gentle on the skin, less prone to contamination than bar soaps used by multiple people and known to remove germs effectively.
3. Lather: Now rub your palms together to build up a lather and spread the foam all over the palm, including the back, front and in between fingers and nails.
4. Scrub: This is an important step to get rid of all the dirt, grime and bacteria from your palms. The process you should follow includes these steps:

• Interlace the fingers of both hands, practicing a to and fro motion, while switching from one hand on top to the other.
• Interlacing one palm with the other through your fingers.
• Use back of one palm opposite another with fingers interlocked.
• Rotate and rub your left thumb on your right palm and vice versa
• And lastly, rotate your clasped fingers on the opposite palm and switch hands.

5. Rinse: Now clean off all the lather worked up by the hand wash under running water, until no foam remains.
6. Dry: Shake your hands vigorously for a moment to get rid of any excess water. Then use a paper towel to completely dry your hands. Then use the paper towel to close the faucet, if not automatic. If a paper towel is unavailable, use the hand dryer.

And voila, you have clean hands! If your hands are not visibly dirty, you can use a sanitizer instead of soap. In case, running water and soap is unavailable, then too a hand sanitizer, such as Dettol Instant Hand Sanitiser, proven to kill 99.9% germs without the use of water, can come to the rescue.

Why Hand Washing at Regular Intervals is Essential

This is the Best Possible Habit One Can Instil

Several studies carried out during the 2006 outbreak of severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) suggest that washing hands more than 10 times a day can cut down the spread of the respiratory viruses by 55 percent, according to a report published by UNICEF India. Washing your hands is something your mother must have advised you since childhood. You listened at times and shrugged it off at others. However, now is the time to pay heed to her advice and follow it diligently. Hand washing at regular intervals can help prevent a host of communicable diseases from spreading. 

A Small Habit that Can Make a Big Difference

Your teachers and parents have been telling you since childhood to wash your hands. The question is what happens if you don’t? The basketball with which you play every day for an hour is probably infested with thousands of germs that can only be seen through a microscope. A friend you play basketball with might be carrying the germs of a communicable disease, such as pneumonia.

When you do not wash your hands after using the toilet, you not only contaminate any object you touch after that but you also put others are at high risk of contracting infections, such as diarrhoea, by touching the objects you touched. That is how germs spread through touch.

People carrying germs touch objects such as door knobs, fridge handles, TV remotes, laptops and phone, which are then touched by other individuals. You might also touch your nose, mouth and eyes or eat after touching contaminated objects. This means germs find easy access to infect your body. No wonder the common cold spreads through a family so fast.

When to Wash Hands

Given below are few instances when hand washing with soap becomes mandatory:

• Before eating.
• After and before food preparation (make sure to wash your hands after handling raw ingredients, like meat, and before touching other food that is to be eaten without being cooked, such as fruits).
• After using the bathroom.
• After sneezing, coughing or blowing your nose.
• After playing with pets or other animals.
• After changing diapers.
• After cleaning the house (wiping the kitchen counter, washing the bathroom, etc).
• After playing outside.
• After visiting a sick relative.

In case hand washing at regular intervals in not possible (for example, when you are not at home) due to unavailability of soap or clean water, you can use a sanitizer. Hand Sanitizer is a great choice since it helps kill 99.9 percent of the germs without water.

How to Prevent Diarrhoea from Spreading

Got A Rough Case of the Loosies?

Over 1.5 million children under five years of age die each year as a result of diarrhoea. It is the second most common cause of child death worldwide. Hand washing with soap at critical times, including before eating or preparing food and after using the toilet, can reduce the prevalence this disease by more than 40 percent, according to figures released by UNICEF India.

Diarrhoea is one of the most common communicable diseases affecting children and adults alike in India. It is mainly caused by contaminated water and poor sanitation. Some of the other communicable diseases are pneumonia, common cold, dengue, malaria and chikungunya. One of the best and most effective ways of stopping these communicable diseases from spreading is by maintaining proper sanitation and cleanliness.

How to Prevent the Infection from Spreading

Given below are some points that can help prevent the spread of germs, thereby protecting you from the risk of contracting a communicable disease.

• Hand Washing – It is probably one of the first and most important tenets of disease prevention. You must wash your hands after using the washroom, before eating snacks or any other food, before and after food preparation (you must make sure to wash your hands after touching raw meat, since bacteria in raw meat can contaminate other objects in the kitchen as well as other food, such as fruits that are to be eaten raw), after coming home from outside and after visiting a sick relative. When you do not wash your hands, you contaminate every object you touch and that object can be touched by someone else, who is then at a higher risk of developing an infection.
• Disinfecting – Make sure to disinfect common household objects regularly. The most common contaminated objects around the house are door knobs, handles, TV remote, laptops, mobile phones and toys. If someone is suffering from an infection, wash their clothes separately and disinfect them with an antiseptic while washing.
• Sanitizing – When you are out and cannot wash your hands at regular intervals due to unavailability of soap or water, you must clean them with a hand sanitizer. For dirt or grease that is visible, you can use antibacterial wet wipes instead.

Apart from practicing the above, you should also only drink clean drinking water to prevent diarrhoea. Also, make sure the utensils in which food is prepared are properly cleaned. You can use Dettol Healthy Kitchen Dish and Slab Gel to make sure that your kitchen and utensils are not only squeaky clean but also hygienically fit for food preparation.

Men's personal hygiene Must Include Manicure and Pedicure

Next Time She Goes for a Mani-Pedi, Join Her!

Society has a created an image for men and what is considered to be the ideal for male appearance: tall, dark, rough and tough. But what is beyond comprehension is what made dirty nails acceptable on men? Just as they say a man's shoe reveals his personality, a man's nails are a reflection of his personal hygiene!

Nails are an easy access for bacteria to make a home. According to the website of the Global Healing Center, men are more likely to get toe fungal infection than women.

But the suggestion of manicures or pedicures for men is still a taboo in India and something could make you the butt of many jokes. However, the reality is that this is what can ensure the best personal hygiene for men too.

Reasons Why a Mani-Pedi is Good for You

• The Physical structure of the nails make them more convenient for germs to easily stick in the crevices. Long, untrimmed nails prove to be better breeding grounds for harmful bacteria and germs that can cause pin worms or other fungal infections! Get them cleaned ASAP! The salon professionals are trained in properly trimming the nails, feet and palms, making your hands and feet perfect for that flip flop.
• Manicures and pedicures are most important because the whole process involves removing dirt and re-moisturizing. This re-infusion of moisture is beneficial in preventing cracked heels and callouses, which can later cause sores and ulcerations.
• A mani-pedi session gives you a thorough massage, which helps in blood circulation. And who wouldn't like a soothing massage after that hectic week?
• Wearing closed shoes for long hours can cause the feet to smell due to the active interaction of sweat and bacteria. The rainy season only makes it worse. A good pedicure session will not only give you a thorough cleaning, it will remove all odor and prevent it from coming back!
• Matters of personal hygiene require a lot of diligent and dedicated effort and when the society is offering a service that will take the load of our hands, why should we not grab it?

There are a lot of beauty salons in the country that offer manicure and pedicure services to men. Some cater elusively to men, while others are unisex.

Proper hand washing may help you become germ free on a daily basis, adding mani-pedi sessions to your personal hygiene routine will enhance your germ-defense mechanism and make you look super clean!

Hand washing is Important for Staying Away from Diseases

If You Have Clean Hands You are Unlikely to Catch a Lot of Diseases

According to a study by the Michigan State University, only one in five people wash their hands correctly after using the bathroom. The research also says that a majority of the subjects were still carrying infection causing germs in the form of fecal matter on their hands even when they claimed they had done their cleaning!

Distressing as these results might be, this study is perhaps a wakeup call for everyone to pay more attention to the simple yet extremely significant act of cleaning hands. So, let’s perfect hand washing and learn more about some common mistakes we commit unknowingly while doing so.

The Recommended Way of Washing Hands

The Centers for Disease Control suggests that the optimal method to clean your hands is:

1. Wet them with water.
2. Use a good hand wash
3. Lather up well with soap and water.
4. Vigorously rub palms and fingers together, making sure you reach all corners and crevices. Do this for at least 15 seconds.
5. Rinse and let the hand completely dry.

How Much Time is Enough?

Most people ignore the stipulated time and end up rushing hand washing within 6-7 seconds on an average, thereby missing the nooks and crannies like between the fingers or under the nails, where the germs comfortably hide and survive. Hence, it is advised to properly clean all the areas, spending about 15-20 seconds.

Drying Hands with Paper Towel vs Hand Dryer

It is a fact worth considering that bacteria multiply faster on wet skin, as compared to dry skin. So, it is important that hands are completely dry before touching any other object. Studies observing the bacteria count and the time taken to dry have revealed that due to the friction involved in paper towel drying, which removes more gunk, it is much more efficient than hand dryers, which typically take 45 seconds and even then leave the hands more wet than a paper towel.

Phones are Breeding Grounds for Germs

Since mobile devices remain warm, they become suitable homes for various types of bacteria and viruses. A study by Annals of Clinical Microbiology and Antimicrobials says that 94.5% of the studied phones were infected and transferred 30% of the germs to the user's hands on contact. So, cleaning phones with alcohol based cleaners is recommended.

Is Hand Sanitizing a Good Substitute for Hand Washing?

Hand sanitizing is suitable for situations where soap and water are unavailable. It isn't as effective for hands that are visibly soiled. Moreover, sanitizing hands is a preferable action to avoid excessive drying of hands due to aggressive washing with soap. However, it is important to use reliable products, such as hand sanitizer or antibacterial wipes, which are created to provide protection against a wide variety of germs.

HAND SANITIZER: HYGIENE IN YOUR HANDS

Whatever maybe your age, we all have to get our hands dirty- while playing around as kids, strolling in malls as youngsters or driving around as working adults. Without ever realizing, we’re touch all kinds of objects through the day and keeping our hands clean goes for a complete toss. The situation becomes worse when we’re traveling and washing hands isn’t the most convenient thing to do. Personal hygiene, unfortunately, is then compromised making us prone to all kinds of diseases and illnesses. It is a lot worse for kids who put the same unwashed hands in their mouths, over their eyes and everywhere else. What is the solution, then? It’s rather sample actually. A hand sanitizer that keeps your hands clean and hygiene wherever you are and whatever you are doing.

Without using water or soap, you can now ensure your hands remain clean. A hand sanitizer is one stop solution to kill germs - all you need are a few drops to scrub your hands with. It’s fast, convenient and handy for you can keep a small bottle wherever you go. No need to go worry about availability of water, tissues or soap. Whether you’re on mobile – traveling most of the time, a good hand sanitizer is your best friend when it comes to keeping your hands clean. Whenever you may want to clean your hands- before a snack, after shaking hands or just to feel fresh- a hand sanitizer is your best bet.

Hand sanitizers are especially good for usage with kids when you are travelling. You don’t have to bother about finding water and tissues to clean their hands. And considering the after-effects of hand sanitizer include hands that smell fabulous and feel soft, kids are bound to love the entire experience.

In my experience, a Dettol hand sanitizer kills most of the germs without any trouble. What’s more, you also have various variants to it- you can take your pick from as much as five different fragrances. All the more reason for you to make that shift and get a bottle of hand sanitizer for yourself! After all, nothing feels better than getting clean hands without any trouble, right?

Hand washing for healthy hands

Would you want to be responsible for someone else falling ill? Each time you haven’t washed your hands and shake hands with someone, you are doing exactly that. Spreading of bacteria and germs can cause serious diseases especially to those with weak immune systems, elderly people and young children.

Best practices of hand washing:

- Remove jewelry such as bracelets, watches, rings
- Wet your hands with water
- Apply Dettol hand wash and work up a good lather
- Scrub between your fingers, back of your hands and under the fingernails
- It’s time to rinse and make sure that all traces of soap are gone
- Dry your hands with a clean towel

When it comes to kids, they are their own worst enemies. The younger your child is, the easier it is for him to have access to the most germ infected surfaces like shoes, underneath the tables, trash cans etc. The sad part is that they don’t stop here. These germ infected fingers either goes in their eyes or mouth and make them fall sick all the time. Teaching them about hygiene may be toughbutwhat if we could turn this boring routine into a fun activity? Here are a few examples:

- Every time your child properly washes his hands, reward him with his favourite toy.
- Children love to make foam and Dettol Touch of Foam is perfect for them. It has a unique creamy lather that enables the children to make lots of foam and have fun.
- If you have more than one kid then you can always have a competition between them. Tell them that you are keeping a scorecard and each time they wash their hands, they will earn a point. Whoeverreaches the set amount of points first is the winner! Now don’t let them wash their hands too frequently as this will lead to skin irritation.
- We can also make them sing their favorite short poem like ‘Twinkle twinkle little star’ because that’s exactly the amount of time it takes to wash hands. And what better way to learn a poem?
- Tell your children that Dettol hand sanitizer is their personal guardian angel and carrying it along will protect them from unwanted germs. Don’t forget to teach them how to use it.

You can be creative and come up with a lot more activities for yourself and the kids. So, have fun and live a healthy life.