Hygiene & Hand Washing

Key points about hygiene and hand washing

Put soap on your hands and wash for 20 seconds. Dry your hands thoroughly.

• keeping your hands clean is one of the best ways to keep from getting sick and spreading illnesses
• cleaning your hands gets rid of germs you pick up from other people, from the surfaces you touch and from the animals you come in contact with

When should I wash my hands?

• before eating
• before, during, and after handling or preparing food
• after sneezing, coughing or blowing your nose
• after playing outside
• after having contact with animals, their toys, leashes, or waste
• after going to the toilet

... and ...

• after touching something that could be contaminated (such as a rubbish bin or cleaning cloth)
• before dressing a wound, giving medicine or putting in contact lenses
• after contact with blood or body fluids (like vomit or saliva)
• after changing a nappy
• more often when someone in your home is sick
• whenever they look dirty

How should I wash my hands?

Use soap and water or an alcohol-based wipe or hand gel.

• wet your hands under clean running water - use warm water if available
• put soap on your hands and wash for 20 seconds
• rub hands together until the soap makes bubbles
• rub on both sides of both hands and in between fingers and thumbs
• rinse all the soap off under clean running water
• dry your hands all over thoroughly - with a paper towel or a clean dry towel