Since we’re all in this crisis together, we all share the responsibility of preventing the spread of this contagious coronavirus COVID-19. Basically, the virus spreads by touch; whether it’s touching others, touching your face, or even touching infected objects. And here comes the significant part of the simple act of washing your hands. Yes, as stated in the title, washing hands can indeed save lives and protect you and your family from getting sick. You should wash your hands not only to fight against the spread of COVID-19 but also to fight the spread of other viruses or sickness. That’s because you really don’t want to get sick with other viruses now and find yourself having to go to the hospital which might further endanger your health of being infected by the coronavirus COVID-19.
You have to be prepared and take the necessary steps as a precautionary procedure.
When do you have to wash your hands?
Try to wash your hands often to endure you’re keeping yourself, your family, and your surroundings all healthy. However, there are key times and situations in which you must carefully and thoroughly wash your hand to lessen the possibility of spreading germs. These key times are the following:
- Before eating food.
- Before, during, and after preparing food for yourself or for others.
- Before and after taking care of someone else in the house who is sick or tired.
- After coughing, sneezing, or blowing your nose.
- After using the bathroom or changing diapers or cleaning a child who used the toilet.
- Before and after touching or treating a wound, a burn, or a cut.
- After touching or feeding animals, or handling per treats, or after getting rid of their waste.
- After touching the garbage.
- After touching doorknobs, keys, cars, or anything that comes from outside of the house.
In addition, always make sure that your nails are clean and trimmed; the number of germs behind the nails can be disturbingly huge and you don’t want to take that risk.
How to correctly wash your hands?
The process of handwashing focuses on five crucial steps that should be applied every time you wash your hands. The five steps are: wet, lather, scrub, risen, and dry.
- Wet: With clean running water; either cold or warm, wet your hands then turn off the tab and apply some soap.
- Lather: carefully lather your hands by thoroughly rubbing them together with the soap. Make sure to lather in between your fingers, your palm, the backs of your hands, and underneath your nails.
- Scrub: keeping on scrubbing for 20 seconds at least up and to 40 seconds.
- Rinse: With clean running water, rinse the soap off your hands.
- Dry: dry your hands using a clean towel.
What is there is not water and soap around? You’ll have to switch to alcohol-based hand sanitizers.
What’s the correct way to use alcohol-based hand sanitizers?
The best option is to always wash with soap and water, in case they’re not available, always be prepared to be equipped with the correct hand sanitizer. Your product should at least contain 60% of alcohol, make sure by looking at the product label. Yet, hand sanitizers don’t get rid of all of the germs.
To apply it, check the recommended amount on the product, apply in the palm of one hand, then rub your hands together. Make sure to cover all areas of your hands till they’re all dry.
Remember, hand sanitizers are not greatly effective when it comes to visible dirt of grease on hands and they may not be able to get rid of harmful chemicals like heavy metal or pesticides.
