How to Wash Your Hands Properly (and When)

Washing your hands with soap and clean water is one of the easiest ways to stop germs spreading at home, at school and at work. It takes under a minute and protects everyone around you, not just you.

Why does handwashing matter so much?

Most of us touch our eyes, nose and mouth many times a day without noticing, and germs on unwashed hands can enter the body this way. Germs can also get into food and drinks while we cook or eat, and they can be left on door handles, tables and toys for the next person to pick up.

According to the CDC, teaching people to wash their hands:

• lowers the number of people who get diarrhoea by 23 to 40%
• reduces diarrhoea in people with a weak immune system by 58%
• cuts colds and other breathing infections by 16 to 21%
• reduces school absence caused by stomach illness by 29 to 57%

When should you wash your hands?

• Before, during and after preparing food
• Before and after eating
• After using the toilet
• After changing a nappy or cleaning up a child who has used the toilet
• Before and after looking after someone at home who has vomiting or diarrhoea
• Before and after treating a cut or wound
• After blowing your nose, coughing or sneezing
• After touching an animal, animal feed or animal waste
• After handling pet food or pet treats
• After touching rubbish

If someone in your home has diarrhoea or vomiting, the NHS advises staying off school or work until at least 2 days after the last episode, so the infection does not spread.

How do you wash your hands the right way?

1. Wet your hands with clean, running water. Warm or cold water both work. Turn off the tap and put on soap.
2. Lather by rubbing your hands together. Remember the backs of your hands, the spaces between your fingers and under your nails.
3. Scrub for at least 20 seconds. An easy way to time it is to hum a song you know well, from start to end, twice.
4. Rinse your hands well under clean, running water.
5. Dry them with a clean towel or an air dryer.

Is hand sanitizer as good as soap and water?

Soap and water come first. When they are not available, an alcohol-based hand sanitizer with at least 60% alcohol is a useful backup. Check the label to see the alcohol content.

To use it, put the amount shown on the label into one palm, spread it over every part of both hands, and rub for about 20 seconds until your hands feel dry. Do not rinse or wipe it off before it has dried, because that makes it work less well.

Sanitizer is not a good choice when:

• your hands are visibly dirty or greasy, for example after gardening or playing outside
• you need to remove harmful chemicals such as pesticides, or heavy metals such as lead
• you are dealing with germs it works poorly against, such as norovirus, a common cause of stomach bugs

Supervise young children when they use sanitizer so they do not swallow it.

When to see a doctor

Clean hands lower the risk of stomach infections, but they cannot prevent every illness. Diarrhoea usually settles within 5 to 7 days and vomiting within 1 or 2 days. Get medical advice if you or a family member has:

• signs of dehydration, such as passing less urine than usual, dark and strong-smelling urine, or fewer wet nappies in a baby
• blood in the stool
• vomiting for more than 2 days or diarrhoea for more than 7 days
• a child under 5 who cannot keep fluids down

Get emergency help straight away for green or yellow-green vomit, severe tummy pain, a stiff neck with a severe headache, or pale or blotchy skin. In Pakistan you can call Rescue 1122 for an ambulance.