Washing Hands - do you always?

[Earlybird]

Do you wash your hands after you go to the loo? I am amazed at the number of people who exit public bathrooms without stopping to wash....even in restaurants! Particularly aware of this, as have been teaching this lesson to dd. She doesn't hesitate to loudly announce "that lady didn't wash her hands" whenever it occurs!

always.

what annoys me more is there is a great big sign on the doors to the unit peter is in, stating to use the alcohol gel on entering and leaving, i always do use it, but the amount of people who dont grrrrrrr.

oh misdee have you seen those signs telling patients to ask doctors if they have washed their hands? I decided to try it when i had a breast exam in hospital - [still breastfeeding so thought it important.] The senior doc tutted, washed them quickly, and then wiped them off on the back of his white coat! Yuck!

Yep - every single time and twice when GS is with me because he insists that I wash mine and then help him do his (even when he hasn't touched anything). I also hate it when people don't wash their hands, it's disgusting!!!!
Might be bordering on some sort of OCD - but I can't abide touching the handle on public loo exits and catch them with me foot when someone else is leaving.

how many of you religious wash-your-hands-after-toilet people also religiously wash your hands after sex? No more germs in urine!

Me - and face (don't even go there)

Message withdrawn

I'm with Pruni. I am probably immune to the germs in my own home, but not in public loos.

I always do after nappy changes unless they are just wee.

And I always do after touching uncooked meat while cooking.

i wash my hands everytime after the loo, also carry one of those hand sanitizer things but more so for ds..u know toddlers and dirt..lol

not washing hands is the biggest reason why people become ill - you have germs in your bowel that are fine in your bowel, but if you were to ingest them (like say, go to the loo and make a sandwhich, therefore putting the germs on the sandwhich) then eat the sandwhich, you can become ill. even more so if you make the sandwhich for someone else.
in the hospital i worked in, nurses pens were swabbed, and germs normally found in the bowel were found on the pens (so therefore, nurses going to loo, not washing hands then touching their pens. lovely!

and we on;y have liquid soap ..do you realise the germs on hard soap !! eek! dont get me started on toothbrushes¬

true - but there is also the theory that too much cleanliness means that the immune system has nothing to do and starts going haywire - leading to allergies etc.

Think back to the conditions our ancestors lived in (even 50 years ago) and currently in other parts of the world. I am fairly certain people didn't die from generally not being ultra clean - most people die as a result of malnutrition and disease (eg smallpox, typhoid, flu ....).

DH and I tend to let your kids grub about in the mud in the garden and not bother too much about hand washing unless they have been doing something particulary suspect.

however - to add a postscript to the last - we are very careful about keeping cuts clean to avoid infections (and would hope hospitals/nurses are ultra clean given that most people in there have some compromise to their immune system - given they are fighting some damage to their body already).

i think there is a difference here- hospitals should be ultra clean to prevent infection spreading between patients and ordinary germs harming people with weak immune systems. Unfortunately there is still quite a lot of complacency amongst staff. i think nurses now are probably better than consultants - asking a consultant if he has washed his hands in my experience makes you immediately a difficult patient.
At home, i will still always wash after going to the loo and preparing meat and cleaning, but do agree that its important not to be too sterile for my ds.

Agree with pruni that IMO some of you are a bit OTT. . I usually wash my hands after using the loo but if its the middle of the night and I go for a wee without putting the light on I don't bother. Also don't flush so haven't touched anything except the loo roll with my hands. Also only wash my hands after changing a dirty nappy, and if out and about (eg in park) will use a wipe instead. Wash them after handling raw meat and emptying the kitchen bin. But not the bathroom bins and not when putting stuff in the bin. Oh and after wiping DS's bottom.

Agree with the difference between home/hospital too.

There are more germs on the door handles in public loos than the toilet seats! I always wash hands in public loos, then try and open doors with elbows/head/backside rather than touch the handles! I have been known to walk out of toilets with hands aloft like scrubbed up surgeon waiting for theatre nurse to attend with surgical gloves.

how do you open a toilet door with your head? ?

in german public loos everything is sensor activated - the flush, the taps, and the toilets seld clean after use. They must think we are filthy!

self clean..

hulababy where do you get the gel from for yr hands?

Haven't read the thread, but I know people who say there are more germs on the handles - you've just wiped yourself, ffs!

Apparently germs from faeces can "get through" ten sheets of toilet roll. Nice.

i only get arsey about it in the pub. i hate sharing a pool cue with a fella becuase i just know he won't have washed his hands as he's gone to the bog half way through the game.

the alternative is to either wear gloves. or take my own cue - but when you take your own cue everyone expects you to be good - and am just average.

OK, read some of the thread - yes, one can be overclean, allergies, etc, yeah, yeah - I don't use antibacterials, but I do not want to prepare or eat food after wiping my backside or changing a nappy. If that makes me a clean freak, so be it...!

Nailpolish - how do you know your friend doesn't put loo roll on towel, wash hands, use towel, put loo roll back on top of towel?!!

I think it is impossible to get away from germs. If you pet a dog, lick a stamp, eat in a restautant you will get it. BTW, having germs in your tummy is a good thing!
Where people draw the line is an individual choice, but I bet the ones that wash their hand compulsevely have as much germs as the ones that don't.

However... please don't use antibacterial soap, the rate at which they are showing at every cleaning product in the market is staggering and it as potential ecological bomb.

Lua, depends on the germs. Anyone who's had gastroenteritis might disagree with you a bit!