My friend Sam (whose daughter Bethany had a liver transplant almost exactly 1 year after Alan) recently posted a helpful, handy, how-to video on good hand-washing.
You definitely don't have to have an immune-suppressed family member to appreciate the germs and illnesses you can avoid with simple hand-washing. We instruct our boys (and follow this ourselves, as well) to rub both hands together, making suds for 20 seconds. We either watch the bathroom clock or sing the ABC's to ensure we've scrubbed long enough.
I like how this video takes that a little further and gives good instructions on how to scrub. Will we use this exact method every time we wash now? Um... no. But we will definitely take improved habits from it, and probably kill more germs in the process. Yay!
The only thing that bothers me about this video is that she turns touches the faucet handle with clean hands to turn the water off. What was the last thing to touch that faucet...? Her dirty hands! At home I always touch again, but in public I either use my elbow or forearm or leave the water running while I grab a paper towel for touching the faucet. Obsessive germo-phobe? Ohhhh... possibly. ;)
Many of you have probably already heard of the germs/hand-washing glitter demonstration. I keep meaning to do that with my boys... maybe this week! For those not familiar, you coat your hands with a light layer of cooking oil and then a sprinkling of fine glitter. The glitter represents bacteria & viruses, and you get to see how long it takes to wash all those stubborn bits away! Hmmm... I'm thinking one kid could 'wash' the quick & easy way and another could scrub up as in the video above and see who got rid of more germs!
Stay warm and stay well!
I appreciate this post. I am a bit of a germ-a-phobe myself. I have a tendency to wash perhaps too long but better safe than sorry, right?
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