Australia’s hand washing habits: what the Food Safety Information Council report shows

Do you wash your hands every single time after using the loo? And do you do it before you prepare food? Be honest.

Australia’s Food Safety Information Council has published its latest report card on hand washing in the country. It shows 19% of Australians do not wash their hands every time they use the toilet. Nearly half (42%) say they do not always wash their hands before handling food.

So, who is getting hand hygiene right, who is falling short - and why is it important?

What did the report find?

The latest report asked 1,229 people about their hand washing behaviour. The findings matched what previous surveys have suggested.

Women again reported slightly better habits than men after using the toilet (80% of men say they wash their hands every time, compared with 83% of women). Before handling food, the gap was wider: 55% of men said they wash their hands, versus 62% of women.

Age appeared to be linked to behaviour too. Among people under 34, 69% said they washed their hands every time they used the toilet. For those over 65, the figure rose to 86%.

While some differences are not surprising - including the pattern between men’s and women’s hand washing - the underlying reasons are still not well understood.

Why don't people wash their hands?

Public health advice often concentrates on the correct technique for washing hands. Far less work examines how many people actually take up that advice. Without knowing how consistently people follow the guidance - and why some may be skipping soap and water - it is hard to judge whether the messages are truly landing.

One study in India explored this issue by asking school children what stopped them from washing their hands. Most (91%) had low "illness threat perception". Put simply, they did not feel they were likely to become unwell if they failed to wash their hands after using the toilet.

Not being able to see germs was a major obstacle: 46% of children mentioned this. At the same time, 72% said they would wash their hands if their friends did.

It is easy to guess that similar factors might influence other ages, but there is not yet enough research to say. People’s motivations for washing - or not washing - their hands probably change across life stages and depending on personal circumstances.

What are the risks?

Urine and faeces are packed with germs, particularly faeces, which contains more than 100 billion germs per gram.

Using the toilet and touching bathroom surfaces means you can pick up germs on your hands. If you leave without washing, you carry those germs out with you and leave them behind on everything you touch afterwards.

You might not fall ill yourself, but you do increase the spread of bacteria. That raises the risk of infection and illness for others, including people with weakened immune systems - such as older adults and those receiving common forms of treatment for cancer.

Washing your hands before cooking and eating matters as well, and the danger runs in both directions. If disease-causing germs are already on your hands (for example, because you did not wash after using the toilet), you can transfer them to food. There they may multiply and even produce toxins. Anyone who eats that food can then become unwell, often with vomiting and diarrhoea.

The reverse is also true. Some foods naturally carry germs prior to cooking - such as salmonella and campylobacter bacteria on raw poultry. If you do not wash your hands after handling these foods, you can move germs to other surfaces and increase the chance of spreading infection.

How should I wash my hands?

Use these three straightforward tips to wash your hands properly:

1. Wet your hands, then rub them together with soap to create a good lather for at least 20 seconds. Remember to clean between your fingers and under your nails. You may need a nail brush.
2. Rinse thoroughly under running water to wash the bugs off your hands.
3. Dry your hands completely using a clean towel for at least 20 seconds. Touching surfaces with damp hands makes it easier for bugs to transfer from the surface to your hands.

What about hand sanitiser?

When running water is not available, an alcohol-based hand sanitiser can be used. These quickly inactivate many types of germs, making them non-infectious. Hand sanitisers work against a broad range of bacteria and viruses responsible for many common gastrointestinal and respiratory infections.

But they are not effective if your hands are dirty with organic material - such as blood, faeces, meat, sand or soil. In those situations, you should wash with soap and water.

The bottom line

Hand washing is similar to wearing a seat belt - you buckle up every time you get in a car, not only on days when you "plan" to have an accident. In the same way, washing your hands is a simple, fast step that protects you and the people around you - but only when you actually do it.

Christine Carson, Senior Research Fellow, School of Medicine, The University of Western Australia

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons licence. Read the original article.

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