To expect my son to wash his hands when he gets in?

[Whyareyousoannoying]

Ds 16yo has been at work or college, come home on public transport.

Aibu to expect him to wash his hands upon arriving home before he starts touching everything especially the fridge, food, cups etc. he will walk straight in and start going in the fridge making a drink not washing his hands.

When I ask him he shouts at me and calls me a germ phobe.

Everyone else in the house manages to wash their hands when they get in.

He was always touching food.. did you not read the first post?

The food she has bought presumably, so yes he should wash his hands before he fingers it all 🙄

I wouldn't think to. It's not like I'm going, "hurrah, I'm home. Going to take my shoes off now, hang my coat up. Wash my hands? Nah, I'm making a positive decision not to do that". It just wouldn't cross my mind. I'd have to get one of those "Now wash your hands" signs and stick up in every room.

Hardly ever remembered to do it during covid either. Again, not out of some actual of rebellion. Just not remembering.

We all do wash our hands when we come in although tbh I don't always know if the teenagers have done it or not. Just think it's a bit gross to be touching buttons and handrails and doors etc and not washing them. I'm not a germ phobe but I am a bit reluctant to catch every bug going

After travelling on public transport,I feel like my hands have a layer of filth on them. So of course I wash them when I get in.

@DappledThings

can you remember to wash your hands after you’ve been to the bog?

maybe some signs would be a good idea

My 18 year old washes his hands a lot and still uses the gel. I'm certain it's the pandemic effect because he didn't do this before. It was so ingrained into him at his school and also at home I think he just does it now without thinking.

Yes I wash my hands when I get home because why would I want to spread germs from my workplace around my home? Also remove my shoes.

I don't don't this and neither does anyone else in our house. Surely there are germs everywhere - indoors and outside. It's just not the kind of thing I give any headspace to.

Yes, I would expect anyone to wash their hands when they return from being outside/in public especially after being on public transit. I also expect the same after using the loo and then again before eating.

I do this as someone who spent most of my career in the NHS and who regularly saw studies around preventing infectious diseases.

How is it odd? His hands will have germs on.

You will essentially have other people's faecal matter and god knows what else in your house. Yuck.

During the pandemic, people were shocked at the low standards of hygiene some people had. Now it seems there’s been a rapid return to be as lax as possible about personal hygiene.

It's interesting that it's the people who don't watch their hands who also seem to struggle with reading comprehension.

I said right there in my op that ds was coming straight in and getting food.

I also said he was the sickliest which he is, but I didn't say it was because of his hygiene in fact what I said was often it's probably just down to luck but hand hygiene wouldn't do any harm. Then someone mentioned blood groups and I said it was interesting because Dh has never had a sickness bug.

I’m always amazed how few people wash their hands, no wonder there’s always so many diseases circulating. Many don’t wash after going to the toilet, people pick their noses or sneeze into their hands then hold the hand rails or touch door knobs. The swabs from London tube rails show (literally) shit loads of E. coli etc on them. It’s revolting not to wash hands after using public transport.

Yes, because that's when it is ingrained to do so and why sinks are right next to toilets. Like many other posters here it is not at all instinctive to wash hands just because I've been outside. No need for it.

@DappledThings but there is a need. If you're coming home from work or school then onto
Public transport touching lots of surfaces.

Your hands are probably going to be worse than if you e just been in your own toilet for a wee.

Your toilet is cleaner than surfaces that hundreds of members of the public are touching. Who have likely been coughing, sneezing, nose picking, not washing their own hands., touching their genitals.

Don't be ridiculous

I don't understand why you have posted, majority saying YABU/don't do it but you are insistent you are correct anyway so surely pointless posting.

You can't force him to do it and there is not a specific reason he should, I wouldn't say it is the norm, esp as in covid times in was a specific thing that we were told to do at first, so clearly wasn't the norm. However he shouldn't shout at you over it.

This is actually a really interesting thread to me!

I always wash my hands after the loo and before/in between food prep, so yes I would wash my hands if I was coming in and getting food straight away, especially things like fruit etc that I might pick up then put back. We have animals so I always wash hands after handling/cleaning them out etc too. Or if I've been to the bins or something.

But if I'm honest I don't wash them as soon as I get inside just from being outside or if I'm just coming in and sitting down/pottering about.

So I guess I wash my hands if I've been "doing something" that makes me specifically stop and think "oohh I need to wash my hands after that". But just being out and about generally wouldn't fall into that category for me. I'm a bit weary of getting ott about things like this though after watching my old nan devolve into obsessive behaviour about it (amongst other things) Obviously that was a whole other level, I won't fully go into it here but it was extreme and very hard to watch/live with. I know it's different and a lot of people just have different habits and all that but honestly when I do see people constantly using sanitiser or talking about how everything is covered in poo just from pottering about in the world or whatever it makes me cringe or have like a weird flash back type feeling.

I think your son shouting at you is your bigger problem.

This thread is also why I never let colleagues make tea for me. I'm fond of my office friends but do not trust them to have clean hands to make me a brew.

I am shocked at the amount of people that don't wash their hands when they have been out for the day - especially when they have been on public transport or at work/school all day - gross!

No I never do or ask my kids to. Even my germ phobic mum didn’t ask us to do this. Only ever did this during Covid.