Wash your hands!

[Bart Elliott]

Do you wash your hands regularly? Do you wash your hands after using the toilet? Given the nature of these questions you probably don't want to answer.  :-\

I rarely get sick, but for the last few days I've had a low-grade fever. I believe the reason I don't get as sick as some is that I wash my hands regularly, especially after using the toilet.

Hand washing is a simple habit to develop, and when done properly, is one of the best ways to avoid getting sick. This simple habit requires only soap and warm water.

Antibacterial soaps have become increasingly popular, but studies have shown that they are no more effective at killing germs than regular soap. Research has also shown that using antibacterial soaps may lead to the development of bacteria that are resistant to the products' antimicrobial agents, which means it will be even harder to kill these germs in the future. In general, regular soap is just fine. The combination of scrubbing your hands with soap and rinsing them with water loosens and removes bacteria from your hands.

I'm amazed how many men don't wash their hands after using the toilet. Whether I'm at a restaurant, club or other public venue, I see men do their thing and walk straight out the door! If that's you, are you so busy that you can take 30 seconds to wash your hands, keeping yourself and the rest of us healthy?

Despite the proven health benefits of hand washing, many people don't practice the habit ... at least not as often as they should (even after using the toilet). What many don't realize is that throughout the day you accumulate germs on your hands from a variety of sources, such as direct contact with people (eg. shaking hands), contaminated surfaces (eg. faucet handles, door knobs, computer keyboards, drumsticks, etc.), contaminated foods ... even animals and animal waste. If you don't wash your hands frequently enough, you can infect yourself with these germs by touching your eyes, nose or mouth. And you can spread these germs to others by touching them or by touching surfaces that they also touch.

That being said, here's my hand washing technique:

• Wet my hands with warm, running water and apply liquid soap (or clean bar soap).
• Lathering well, I rub my hands vigorously together for at least 15 to 20 seconds.
• Scrub all surfaces of my hands, including the backs of the hands, wrists, between your fingers and under your fingernails. I sometimes use a brush to get under the nails when I know I've got germs on the hands.
• Rinse well with warm water.
• Dry my hands with a clean or disposable towel.

When I'm in a public restroom:

• Use the towel to turn off the faucet.
• Use the towel to open the door to the restroom as I leave.

Many people forget that after they wash THEIR hands, they still have to protect themselves from those that did not wash their hands. If I see an employee at a food establishment not wash their hands, I report them to the supervisor.

I keep an antibacterial soap in my vehicle to use when I can't get to a restroom to wash my hands. My whole family uses the antibacterial soap when we leave a public place where we've been in contact with surfaces and people, contaminated or not. My first choice is always soap and water, but if that's not available I'll use the antibacterial soap.


Spreading germs is a serious thing. If you don't believe me, check this out ...

Infectious diseases that are commonly spread through hand-to-hand contact include the common cold, flu and several gastrointestinal disorders, such as infectious diarrhea. While most people will get over a cold, the flu can be much more serious. Some people with the flu, particularly older adults and people with chronic medical problems, can develop pneumonia. The combination of the flu and pneumonia, in fact, is the eighth-leading cause of death among Americans.

Inadequate hand hygiene also contributes to food-related illnesses, such as salmonella and E. coli infection. In fact I just read that according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), as many as 76 million Americans get a food-borne illness each year. Of these, about 5,000 die as a result of their illness. Others experience the annoying signs and symptoms of nausea, vomiting and diarrhea.

So do us all (and yourself) a favor ... wash your hands regularly, especially after using the toilet.

[Nathan Cartier]

Was someone watching Alton Brown last night?  He was talking about food preparation and safety, while cooking a Cornish Game Hen.

I like to cook, so I'm constantly washing my hands.  I rarely get sick.  On a recent road trip, everyone came home with a bad cold/flu that they may have picked up on the plane, but not me.

[Chip Donaho]

Thanks for the message Bart.  8)  I agree with everything said. Now I have to teach my grandson what I've known for many years. That's going to be a major chore. Kids have a tendancy to ignore what they bring home from school.  ::)

[Louis Russell]

wash your hands regularly, especially after using the toilet.

Very good advice.  A mechanic friend of mine tells me he washes his hands BEFORE going to the restroom!   ;D

[Jim R.]

I agree. I think some guys think their stuff isn't dirty so they don't need to wash, or just want to touch as little in the batchroom as possible anyway.
I follow my routine to the 't' every time.

I also believe the body needs to build up its defences, so I don't go overboard on the antibaterial stuff. There's been studies on the overuse of those too and the possible effects on kids. Its interesting the huge increase of allergies and the body overreacting to many things, like peanuts and such.

[skinbeatergreg]

AMEN!  Thanks for posting this, Bart.

I worked food service jobs most of my pre-professional life and proper hand washing is the cornerstone of maintaining good hygenic conditions, both in your kitchen and in your body.

I, too, am amazed and disgusted at the number of guys who "spray and pray" (use the restroom and then hope they don't get sick). They exit the bathroom like the place is on fire!

These are also the guys I later see licking the hotwings sauce off their fingers at the bar or digging into their date's popcorn bucket at the movies! Nasty!   :P

[Joe]

These are also the guys I later see...digging into their date's popcorn bucket at the movies! Nasty!   :P

I think this pales in comparison to the nightcap afterward...

[Bart Elliott]

A few other things to think about in relationship to your hands and hygiene:

1) Coughing into your hand. Sometimes it can't be helped, so wash your hands immediately. If I have a cough I typically turn my head and use the sleeve of my shirt, rather than my hand.

2) Sneezing into your hand. Again, sometimes it can't be helped. Be sure to wash your hands thoroughly. Even when using a tissue to blow my nose, I wash my hands afterwards.

As awful as it is to sneeze and cough into your hand(s), it's far better than openly sneezing and coughing ... throwing your germs out into the open ... spraying surfaces and others. There's nothing worse than seeing someone not cover their mouth or nose ... watching projectiles leave their body and travel across the room until it finds its mark.


Something else to mention ... slightly off topic ... is your toothbrush. If you were sick, and you brush your teeth with that same toothbrush, you are putting all those germs right back into your body. Two choices: either throw away the toothbrush and get a new one ... or what I do, sterilize the toothbrush.

To sterilize your toothbrush, all you need is a little bleach and some water. I learned this from my dentist years ago; 1 part bleach to 100 parts water is enough to kill any germ ... even the AIDS virus. My dentist uses this formula to sterilize his dental tools. You could use this same formula to wipe down any surface needing to be sterilized.

When I sterilize my toothbrush, I usually soak it overnight in the bleach/water solution. The next day I remove the toothbrush from the solution and rinse it with water.

[Chip Donaho]

Don't forget to wipe your sticks down with alcohol. Never know who last picked those suckers up. I've seen other people mess with my sticks while on break. Not much, but it does happen more than you know. Same goes with putting fingers on cymbals. People are crude and don't realize what they did to your stuff. Same goes with drum bags. Wipe the handles off once in a while.   ;)

[donelk]

I feel I should take a SHOWER after coming out of some bathrooms at venues I play, not just wash my hands. ICK!

[Paicey]

Geez Bart, talk about being anal!. Um, i do the same thing. Fastest way to transfer any bacteria to your body is through your hands touching your eyes, nose, or lips. I keep my fingernails short. I do the paper towel opening the door thing and simply toss it on the floor! if there is no waste basket. I probably wash my hands 5 or more times daily. Ill open restroom doors with the front of my foot or knuckles if its a push open door at times. Ok....so im anal, im anal about snare drums to! ;D.

[Bart Elliott]

Geez Bart, talk about being anal!. Um, i do the same thing.

There will be people think we are really anal about all this ... but getting sick isn't fun ... and if we can stay healthy by taking this little precautions, it's well worth any hassle.

I think people are finally learning that you don't mess around with bacteria, germs or viruses. I wasn't always this cautious, like years ago when I was young and in college ... you know, invincible.  ::)

I think I got sick this past week because I wasn't cautious. My son's Cub Scout den went bowling, and I didn't wash my hands after bowling ... and I ate something. (stupid Bart)

[Vintage Ludwig]

Thank you Bart for posting this.  It takes guts to address the fact that the majority of men dont wash their hands after going to the bathroom.  I tend to think its a matter of being lazy-

Im a complete germ phobic individual.  I have been since I was little kid.  I do whatever I can to avoid public restrooms-even at work and we have a service that maintains the the bathrooms.  I avoid handshakes when I can.  I tell people to cover their mouths when they cough-I dont pass through the space someone is in if they sneeze.  I tell people they shouldnt spit if i see them spit.

In a restaurant I immediately go to the bathroom and wash my hands after reading the menu and ordering.  I NEVER touch anything in or near the bathroom.  I dont flush after using the toilet.  I always use the generous wad of paper towels to shut the water off and open the door when I leave.  I have casually told men that its very unsanitary to not wash their hands if I witness them not doing so.  Its led to verbal exchanges on numerous occaisions.  One time it ended up openly voiced by me in front of the whole restaurant!  The police were even summoned and the nasty no hand washing individual and his date/wife left!

The mere thought of not washing our hands-REGULARLY-appals me.

In fact, Im going to go wash them right now-

[NY Frank]

I must admit that public bathrooms blow my mind a bit, too. 
I use them - cuz I hafta  :)  - but, it's often pretty gross.

I see some people at work occasionally walking out of the bathroom without
washing their hands.  That pretty much gags me.

There's pretty much nothing worse for me than going to a bathroom at a bar
and having to stand in unknown unspeakable liquids on the floor.

Excuse me.
[...where's the pail?  ... brrrr ...]

[skinbeatergreg]

  I dont flush after using the toilet. 

Hm. Interesting approach.  I think that contributes to the overall unsanitary conditions in public spaces.  Works for you, but sticks it to the next guy coming into the stall. No one likes to see Mr. Hanky saying "HI-DEE-HO" when they look down.

Same idea with stepping on the lever.  I see that approach quite a bit. Now all the grody stuff that was on the floor is now up on the toilet and on the next guys' hands...Maybe yours.

Always flush, but use some toilet paper to protect yourself. 

And for me handshakes are a part of doing business. Can't avoid 'em.

So I'm never without a bottle of Purell hand sanitizer.  I use it whenever I leave the street and enter a building (office, eatery, home, etc.) or whenever I feel the need (I had to grab the handrail walking up the subway steps this morning.  Squirted a shot into my palm and rubbed it in, no problems.)

Also, another good practice is to never touch your face with your hands unless they are clean. There are tons of blood vessels right up next to the surface of the skin in the mucous membranes (eyes, nose, mouth) and germs can get into your body lickety-split.  This was a HUGE thing when I was a DI at Parris Island. Touching, or worse yet, scratching was a big no no for the recruits.

With 80 men sharing a squad bay, the potential for an outbreak of Recruit Crud was extremely high.  We took every precaution imaginable, and then some!  Ha!

[Vintage Ludwig]

Same idea with stepping on the lever.  I see that approach quite a bit. Now all the grody stuff that was on the floor is now up on the toilet and on the next guys' hands...Maybe yours.

Always flush, but use some toilet paper to protect yourself. 

And for me handshakes are a part of doing business. Can't avoid 'em.

So I'm never without a bottle of Purell hand sanitizer.  I use it whenever I leave the street and enter a building (office, eatery, home, etc.) or whenever I feel the need (I had to grab the handrail walking up the subway steps this morning.  Squirted a shot into my palm and rubbed it in, no problems.)

Also, another good practice is to never touch your face with your hands unless they are clean. There are tons of blood vessels right up next to the surface of the skin in the mucous membranes (eyes, nose, mouth) and germs can get into your body lickety-split.  This was a HUGE thing when I was a DI at Parris Island. Touching, or worse yet, scratching was a big no no for the recruits.

With 80 men sharing a squad bay, the potential for an outbreak of Recruit Crud was extremely high.  We took every precaution imaginable, and then some!  Ha!

Hm. Interesting approach.  I think that contributes to the overall unsanitary conditions in public spaces.  Works for you, but sticks it to the next guy coming into the stall. No one likes to see Mr. Hanky saying "HI-DEE-HO" when they look down.



I NEVER drop a deuce in a public restroom!  Im not sitting on a public toilet even with a seat protector!  Im speaking of urinating.  I realize I should flush-but I cant bring myself to touch the lever :-\ 

I think I may have a touch of "Howard Hughes" syndrome......I.E. OCD

[bolweevil]

I've worked with special needs children for the past year or so, and being around elementary school students has made me a believer in regular handwashing. 
I try to be the fun teacher who gives high-fives all around, but when many of the kids are coughing in their hands or picking their noses, one must keep scrubbing the germs away.

And I don't know if anyone has mentioned public drinking fountains, but young children have a habit of sucking the water out, rather than drinking it.  If you ever visit a school and expect to drink water, be sure to bring your own cup and duck into the teacher's lounge to fill it up.

[Peppe]

Like Bart mentioned, the keys of your computer keyboard contain huge amounts of bacteria. We use our fingertips to depress the keys, and we use our fingertips for so many other tasks. The difference is that toilets, under normal conditions, gets cleaned regularly, mostly with strong chemicals. But how often do you clean your computer keyboard? In the case with the computers at my college institution, my guess is never, judging from the color of the keys. 

Me? I eat all my meals in front of a computer. I get a cold approximately 1-2 times a year. Almost every time, I can point to a specific person as the cause (last time, it was my hairdresser).

It's common practice to keep the stove plates and the oven clean. While this is important for efficiency (and the obvious visual appeal), it does nothing for bacteria. All bacteria and viruses die everytime you power it up. The real dangers in the kitchen are the refrigerator and even the freezer.....certain bacteria and viruses can survive for a long time in there....There are refrigerators with some kind of silver-treatment that are supposed to take care of this very effectively.....anyway, it's important to clean it thoroughly and regularly.

Refrigerators and keyboards aside, to me, it seems that the close encounter with people is by far the biggest risk - small elevators, crowded places, sick hairdressers....even if they don't sneeze on you....

So, why is nobody typing? ;D

[TheBeachBoy]

I always wash my hands after using the restroom.  Some of my friends will make fun of me, but the result is I don't get sick that often, maybe one or twice a year.  When I do get sick, a cold typically lasts only a couple days.  When I worked in restaurants I washed my hands constantly, especially when dealing with money and credit cards.

[drumrjohnr]

A few other things to think about in relationship to your hands and hygiene:

1) Coughing into your hand. Sometimes it can't be helped, so wash your hands immediately. If I have a cough I typically turn my head and use the sleeve of my shirt, rather than my hand.

2) Sneezing into your hand. Again, sometimes it can't be helped. Be sure to wash your hands thoroughly. Even when using a tissue to blow my nose, I wash my hands afterwards.

As awful as it is to sneeze and cough into your hand(s), it's far better than openly sneezing and coughing ... throwing your germs out into the open ... spraying surfaces and others. There's nothing worse than seeing someone not cover their mouth or nose ... watching projectiles leave their body and travel across the room until it finds its mark.


Something else to mention ... slightly off topic ... is your toothbrush. If you were sick, and you brush your teeth with that same toothbrush, you are putting all those germs right back into your body. Two choices: either throw away the toothbrush and get a new one ... or what I do, sterilize the toothbrush.

To sterilize your toothbrush, all you need is a little bleach and some water. I learned this from my dentist years ago; 1 part bleach to 100 parts water is enough to kill any germ ... even the AIDS virus. My dentist uses this formula to sterilize his dental tools. You could use this same formula to wipe down any surface needing to be sterilized.

When I sterilize my toothbrush, I usually soak it overnight in the bleach/water solution. The next day I remove the toothbrush from the solution and rinse it with water.

I'm a bit of a health nut so agree with most comments. Hands are not the only vector for infectious disease but a common one.

Another effective way to sterilize your toothbrush is with hydrogen peroxide. The topical solution, while intended for external used can be used as a mouthwash (spit don't swallow). I think they recommend diluting it 50%. I try to brush my teeth at least once a week using a paste made from baking soda and hydrogen peroxide. I use regular toothpaste the rest of the time.

I often use dilute clorox to sanitize my (beer) home brewing equipment. Make sure it's "very" dilute before getting near your mouth. Most mouthwashes are somewhat antibacterial so can be used to knock down undesirable colonizations in your mouth.

The immune system is complex and can be influenced by things like stress level, diet, fitness, weight, etc...  So you'll benefit from more than the obvious when you make improvements in these sundry areas.

Be well.

John Roberts