By Betsy Crick
It’s back to school time! Keeping hands clean is one of the most important steps we can take to avoid getting sick and spreading germs.
Many diseases and conditions are spread by not washing hands. Make sure your children know the proper way to wash their hands.
- Wet your hands with clean, running water (warm or cold), turn off the tap, and apply soap.
- Lather your hands by rubbing them together with the soap. Be sure to lather the backs of your hands, between your fingers, and under your nails.
- Scrub your hands for at least 20 seconds. Need a timer? Hum the “Happy Birthday” song from beginning to end twice.
- Rinse your hands well under clean, running water.
- Dry your hands using a clean towel or air dry them.
Washing hands is best, but if soap and water are not available, use an alcohol-based hand sanitizer that contains at least 60% alcohol. Alcohol-based hand sanitizers can quickly reduce the number of germs on hands in some situations, but sanitizers do not eliminate all types of germs. Hand sanitizers are not as effective when hands are visibly dirty or greasy.
No child under the age of three years old should be permitted to use hand sanitizer, and no child of any age should be permitted to use hand sanitizer without supervision.
For more information, please visit the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) website.
Live Healthy S.C. 
I work in a medical manufacturing facility. The importance of clean hands is literally communicated to us every day.
I do think it is worth mentioning that drying your hands with paper towel is actually a cleaner option than using a hand dryer. While a hand dryer can reduce the spread of germs, it is dependent on the person washing their hands properly. You would be surprised how few people actually do it right.
You do add the directions for proper washing though. A nice touch.