Make sure your hands stay clean to prevent illness
Washing your hands can be your first line of defense against illness. Your hands touch everything: your food, your computer, and public spaces. The germs from anything you touch can be transferred to your body from your hands and cause you to become sick. Follow these instructions from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to make sure that your hands stay clean and prevent illness.
How to Wash Your Hands
- Use warm water to wet your hands.
- Use an antibacterial soap to lather your hands. Scrub your palms, the backs of your hands, in between your fingers, and underneath your fingernails. This ensures no germs are left behind in any crevice of your hands.
- Scrub for about 20 seconds, which is similar to reciting the alphabet once.
- Rinse your hands with warm water and be sure to remove all of the soap.
- Dry your hands with a paper towel or shake off excess water. Avoid using hot-air hand dryers because these can be growing zones for bacteria due to the moist environment.
When to Wash Your Hands
It is important to know when to wash your hands to keep yourself and others healthy. Wash your hands whenever you can see that your hands are not clean, but remember that germs are too small to see. Sometimes hands that look clean can be covered with germs! These are times when you should definitely wash your hands.
- After using the restroom
- Before and after preparing food
- Before and after eating
- After sneezing, coughing, or blowing your nose
- Before and after treating wounds
- After visiting public places such as parks and grocery stores
- After touching pets or animals
If you don’t have immediate access to soap and water, using a hand sanitizer can also work until you can wash your hands with soap and water. Use a hand sanitizer with at least 60% alcohol content and apply it the same as you would soap. Continue rubbing your hands until they are dry, being sure to coat the front and back of both hands.
Learn more about why hand-washing is important.
Good hand hygiene is one of the best ways to protect your health. Another is having a primary care provider (PCP) you can see when you are sick, have health concerns, or just need a regular wellness checkup.