Which soap is the best? How effective is hand sanitizer? How do I get my child to sanitize their hands at school and at home? What you need to know to keep your children’s hands clean is detailed in the article.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC, USA), one in three diarrheal illnesses and one in five respiratory infections (such as colds and flu) can be prevented simply by washing hands with soap and water.

“Don’t forget to wash your hands!”

Habits must be learned in childhood, and the best educators are parents. Skills should not be the subject of discussion. And that’s something we can instill in our children, says pediatrician Candice Barra for Today Parent.com.

“If we make hand washing with soap and water part of our routine, we can hope that when they’re out of reach, they’ll remember to do it with minimal prompting,” advises the doctor.

The whole family should wash their hands before eating, after being in public places, playing outside and, of course, after using the toilet. The doctor urges parents to always remind their children about the latter.

How to teach a child to wash hands properly

The first step in proper hand hygiene is turning on the faucet. Let the child choose a comfortable temperature for him. It is not necessary for the water to be warm. First, the hands are held under a stream of water, after which they are thoroughly soaped. Washing and scrubbing your hands is important because they both remove bacteria. Children should rub their palms, then clean their fingertips, the space between the fingers and under the nails for 20 seconds. A song lasting about 20 seconds can be helpful. According to the CDC, there are no studies that show a significant risk if the water is turned off during hand hygiene and then turned back on.

After the hands have been thoroughly washed, they should be rinsed until all soap is removed. Ask your child to dry his hands with a cotton or paper towel.

If you are with a child in a public toilet, it is best to take a paper towel before flushing, then dry your hands with a towel, and then turn off the faucet. Open the door with a towel and throw it away. In this way, you will avoid contact with germs after washing your hands. It is important to teach the child that when he is alone, he should not touch the faucet and the door with his bare hands. You can teach him the paper towel trick, and if he doesn’t have one, the door can be opened by pushing the handle with your elbow, pushing with your hip, or pushing with your back.

Which soap is the best?

Many parents believe that antibacterial soap is the only viable hand hygiene product. However, this is not the case, any soap that lathers is equally effective at removing bacteria and viruses from your hands. Regular soap may even work better than harsher soaps, which can dry out your hands a lot after frequent washing.

In addition, some studies show that the use of antibacterial soap promotes antimicrobial resistance.

Hand disinfection is a good alternative when we do not have access to water and soap, epidemiologists also say. If using hand sanitizer, fill the palm of your hand with the gel, then rub your hands together for 20 seconds after washing with soap and water. Then the hands should be dried. The recommended disinfectant contains at least 60% alcohol.

Keep in mind that disinfectant is not as effective as soap and water and does not remove all germs. They are not as effective when hands are visibly dirty or greasy, and they do not remove pesticides from hands.

In addition to washing hands with soap and water, children should be taught sneeze and cough hygiene. He sneezes into the crook of his elbow, not into his hands, unless he has a disposable tissue handy. After that, you need to wash your hands with soap and water or use a disinfectant.

It takes time to get into the habit of washing your hands with soap. At the beginning, the child needs to be constantly reminded of the rules of when and how to wash hands. But, if the habit has entered into everyday life, it will be practiced throughout life, thus contributing to the preservation of the health of the whole family.

When to wash your hands

• Before, during and after cooking
• Before eating
• Before and after we help a sick person who has vomiting or diarrhea
• Before and after treating a cut or wound
• After the toilet
• After we change the child’s diapers or help the child use the toilet
• After touching the animal, we feed it or clean it
• After we touch the trash
• If hands are visibly dirty or greasy

The benefits of hand washing were discovered by accident

Hungarian doctor Ignaz Semmelweis (1818 – 1865) is considered the father of hygiene. In 1846, he worked at the General Hospital in Vienna and noticed that women who gave birth with the help of medical students had a higher risk of death than those who were assisted by midwives.

Finding out the reason, the doctor drew attention to the fact that students often went to the maternity ward after the autopsy, where they brought all kinds of germs. Because they did not wash their hands, they passed these germs on to pregnant women. The doctor introduced a rule of hand washing and disinfection with a solution containing chlorine, and the maternal mortality rate decreased significantly. Semmelweis’s discovery – hand washing – became one of the most important health care measures.

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