With the spread of coronavirus, many people have begun to wonder about the importance of handwashing. Dr. Dave and his medical staff at Rise Chiropractic and Acupuncture out of Jacksonville, FL is dedicated to providing your overall wellness and answering your questions pertaining to your health. The importance of handwashing cannot be overstated during this time as we battle the current pandemic of COVID-19. Rise Chiropractic and Acupuncture realize the importance of your health and practice regular hand washing to keep you and your family safe.
How Effective is Handwashing?
Hand washing provides many different benefits by removing gems from our hands. Without washing your hands, germs can be transferred by:
- Touching your face, eyes, nose, or mouth
- Getting into drinks that are touched
- Being transferred to objects we handle
- Directly from one person to another upon touching
Taking measures to wash your hands before their situations would prevent the transfer of germs that can make people sick.
Is Handwashing Beneficial?
Hand washing not only prevents you from getting sick but from infecting others as well. According to the CDC, handwashing can prevent 30% of diarrhea-related and 20% of respiratory-related illnesses. Often antibiotics are prescribed for these illnesses which could have prevented. It also prevents those with compromised immune systems, such as an auto-immune disorder, from contacting these sicknesses which could prove fatal to them. Here at Rise Chiropractic in Jacksonville, FL we are concerned with your overall health and understand the benefits of washing or hands regularly.
Which Handwash is the Best?
If you are trying to decide which soap to use for your home you needn’t worry much. Since most soaps just remove germs instead of killing them, you can use whatever scented or moisturizing soap you’d like. Soap does tend to dry out the hands because it removes the natural oils our skin produces, so replacing some of that with a moisturizing soap may be a good idea. If you run a business that deals with customers then you may need to consider an antibacterial soap for your employees. This type of soap will kill the germs on contact and provide a safer environment for your employees to work in.
How Often Should I Wash my Hands?
These are the most important times to prevent the spread of illness. Any time you find yourself in one of the following situations you should be washing your hands:
- Any time you deal with items being transferred from another person
- Food handlers before and after handling food
- Anyone after handling meat
- Any time you cough or sneeze
- After using the bathroom
- After digging in dirt or gardening
- If your hands are visibly soiled
- After touching garbage
- After touching or petting animals
- Any time after handling money
Any time you could have come in contact with bacteria from someone else or from another source it is a good idea to wash your hands to prevent that bacteria from infecting your body.
Why Hand Wash with Soap?
If you’re asking this question you may have heard that soap doesn’t actually kill germs – unless it’s antibacterial of course. If you haven’t heard that, you’re probably asking “well then what is the point of soap?” right now. The reason handwashing with soap is still effective is that although it may not kill those germs, it does remove them. And as far as your body is concerned, that’s virtually the same thing. You can’t get sick from a bacteria that has been washed down the drain with soap.
How Can Handwashing Break the Chain of Infection?
This is done because washing will remove the bacteria from them. If the gems aren’t there, they can’t be transferred from person to person. By washing your hands in any of the situations listed above, you will drastically reduce the risk of transferring any bacteria which may cause illness to another person. Remove the germs and you remove the risk.
When Did Handwashing Start?
Hand washing has been around for centuries in religious sectors and as a cultural status symbol in some cultures. The earliest record of handwashing dates back to medieval times (5th to 15th centuries). The people realized that you shouldn’t eat with dirty hands and there was a link between sure and illness. They would want their hands upon waking and before meals. This is impressive since this link want scientifically proven until the 1800s.
When Did Handwashing Become Important?
This question can be argued because hand washing has been around for many centuries, however, it wasn’t important scientifically until 1847 when and Austrian and an American doctor linked unclean hands to puerperal fever. They noticed that surgeons would go directly from an autopsy room to assist with child delivery. It was theorized that particles from the autopsy room were being transmitted to the mother during childbirth and creating the illness.
When Did Handwashing Guidelines Come About?
Hand washing wasn’t didn’t have any specific guidelines until the 1980s. It was just one of the cultural things that most people did stay clean. However, not everyone practiced good hand hygiene and this was a problem for some professions that interacted with customers on a regular basis. Because of this, the WHO issued a set of guidelines for handwashing, and policies were put in place to make sure employers posted the guidelines where the employees would be washing their hands.
Call Today!
If you have any questions about handwashing, whether they’re technical or general, give us a call at Rise Chiropractic in Jacksonville, FL. At Rise Chiropractic, we are concerned with your general health whether you’re in Jacksonville Florida, or the surrounding area. We serve the areas of:
- Mandarin, FL
- St. John’s, FL
- Jacksonville, FL
You can reach us at 904-512-7449. Give us a call today and start your wellness journey with Rise Chiropractic.
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