The Ultimate Hand Washing Method

hand washing

Have you ever asked yourself how long should you wash your hands or with what frequency? Dr. Mercola recently published an article with a detailed answer to those questions. I have summed up the main points in this blog post. 

• Handwashing is an important strategy to reduce the spread of infections, colds and the flu; the key is to perform the task correctly and for the right amount of time
• Research has shown 84 to 95 percent of people do not wash their hands long enough to remove germs after using the bathroom; 7 percent of women and 15 percent of men didn’t wash their hands at all
• While washing prevents the spread of infection, excessive washing may increase your risk of infection as it removes protective oils from your skin faster that can be replaced, resulting in red, raw, chapped hands
• Antibacterial soap is neither necessary nor healthy; research shows regular soap is as effective, and does not promote antibiotic resistance as does antibacterial soap

In a study from Michigan State University,¹ researchers watched more than 3,700 people after using the bathroom and reported that 95 percent did not wash their hands long enough to kill germs.²

The average amount of time people spent washing was only six seconds. Even more disturbing was that 7 percent of women and 15 percent of men didn’t wash their hands at all. A recent study of 2,000 people from Britain found similar results after using the bathroom, as 84 percent were not washing their hands long enough to reduce the spread of infection.³⁴

A new study released by the British Royal Pharmaceutical Society found that washing your hands for just 20 seconds⁸ will remove germs and reduce the need for antibiotics.⁹

Washing your hands helps to reduce the rising problem with antibiotic resistance as it can prevent respiratory infections and infections causing diarrhea, when antibiotics may be unnecessarily prescribed.²²

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