Wash your hands

After the Wuhan virus case, doctors have encouraged the public to practise hand hygiene, among other steps. Washing our hands properly with soap and running water is a simple – and really important way – to avoid becoming sick. Wet your hands with clean running water, turn off the tap, and apply soap

• It’s important to use clean running water. Your hands could become recontaminated if

placed during a basin of standing water that has been contaminated through previous use.

• Hot or cold water are often used because the temperature of the water does not appear to affect microbe removal. However, warmer water may cause more skin irritation and is more environmentally costly.

• You should also use soap to wash your hands because the surfactants in soap lift soil and microbes from the skin, and people tend to scrub hands more thoroughly when using soap, which further removes germs. Lather your hands by rubbing them together with the soap

Lather the backs of your hands, between your fingers, and under your nails. Lathering and scrubbing hands create friction, which helps lift dirt, grease and microbes from the skin.

Scrub your hands for at least 20 seconds

• If you don’t know how long this is, hum the “Happy Birthday” song from beginning to end twice.

• There are very few studies on the optimal length of time for handwashing. It is likely to depend on many factors, including the kind and quantity of soil on the hands and the setting of the person washing hands.

• Current evidence suggests that washing hands for about 15-30 seconds removes more germs from the hands than washing for shorter periods.

Rinse your hands well under clean running water Soap and friction help lift dirt, grease and microbes – including disease-causing germs – from the skin so they can be flushed from the hands. Dry your hands using a clean towel or air dry them

Germs can be transferred more easily to and from wet hands; therefore, your hands should be dried after washing.

Sources: WHO, US. CENTERS FOR DISEASE CONTROL

AND PREVENTION