Hand Hygiene for little ones!

[NeilCharlwood]

When we are out and about with our little one we often use hand wipes and hand gel to protect them from germs. My wife has received various recommendations but we wondered what else might be worth giving a go?

Hi NeilCharlwood,
We're moving your post to Children's Health because we think you'll get more of a response there.

Thanks for that, much appreciated

i wouldn't worry overly.
those handgels don't kill everything anyway, but it does children good to be exposed to germs and stuff anyway

i mean, i have used the handwipes once or twice when ds2 picked a dog poo up and when they've been touching animals and stuff, but as a general rule I think they're unnecessary

Children need to be exposed to some germs and bacteria in order to build up a healthy immune system, so I wouldn't worry too much unless they really are mucky from touching animals etc.

Sainsburys do toddler wipes 'with antibacterial agent,' we give DD's hands a quick wipe with one before she eats.
They come in a bright green packet if you are looking for them.

Never bothered with any of that. Just carried liquid soap and towels to dry their hands with. Nothing beats soap and water, IMO.

soap and water?

When we go to a local children's farm (that was rather publicly closed down due to an awful outbreak of e-coli) they have handwashing stations all over the place, and recommend just soap and water. They even say on the signs gels and wipes don't work. Good old fashioned soap and water.

But I'd echo the others. Don't get too bogged down about protecting children from germs. They need exposure to get a good strong immune system. I really only wash my children's hands before they eat.

Thanks for the responses. I know that exposure to germs is a good thing in regards to a child's immune system but you can never be too sure, especially when they are at nursery all day and you can never be sure that they are washing their hands. I suppose we are after something we can try and put in his school bag!

school bag? how old is the child we're talking about?

He is only 4

so would you be hoping he would use it himself? or is it for nursery staff? My ds is 4 and I know that if I put something in his bag to use to clean his hands he'd never use it, and the staff at his preschool would just make sure he washed his hands with soap and water after using the toilet and before eating.

Then really I wouldn't bother. Perhaps ask the nursery about their policies on hand washing to reassure you? Even if you put gel in his school bag you can't guarantee he'll use it, and surely you could wash his hands at pick up time?

You'll find most EYFS providers cover things like good hygiene and hand washing anyway, I think having something in his bag to protect him from germs is probably a bit 'much'

at our nursery they do make sure the children have washed hands after using the toilet.
if you can trust him to use hand gel each time then surely you can trust him to wash his hands using the soap and water provided?

interesting article i read recently

If I found hand gel in a 4 year old's bag at nursery I would take it out and put it out of the children's reach. Some contain alcohol.
We have soap and water at nursery which is sufficient to wash children's hands with.
Out and about I probably wouldn't bother unless they went to the toilet and would just use water and soap.

I did hear that there were a few hand washes/gels that were alcohol free?

Go on then Neil, name them and get some free publicity for your company

All I meant was that I had heard about some hand gels and washes and wondered if anyone else had. If you do have any names then I would be pleased to know that too!

Neil yes there are some. For use in a clinical setting. You won't find any in a small bottle.

As for asking a 4yo to have alcohol gel to avoid 'infections'. Aren't you worried that yo are going to bring him up worried and frightened of everything around him? The human race has survived wo alcohol gel for a long time and I am sure will do for some time again.

yes, you can get alcohol free ones. I have a "quash" one which is totally natural and alcohol-free.
i only picked it up because it was reduced to clear. and as I say i've literally only used it a handful of times due to poo-picking incidents

but they certainly are available