International holidays - World Hand Hygiene Day

Typhoid fever, hepatitis B, rotavirus infection, dysentery and cholera are the result of non-compliance with generally known hygiene rules. Therefore, on posters and propaganda of the Soviet years they printed calls: “Before eating, wash your hands with soap and water!”, “Are you in a hurry? Did you wash your hands poorly? Be afraid, comrade, of Koch’s wand!” Hand cleanliness is monitored by both cooks in the kitchen, surgeons in the operating room, nurses in manipulation rooms, and ordinary people in everyday life. Mankind has managed to defeat many diseases by finding ways to prevent and treat them. However, WHO insists that in the 21st century. It is necessary to pay daily attention to body hygiene as a way to control the spread of infectious diseases. "Cleanliness is the key to health!" - says a proverb familiar to everyone from childhood. At the initiative of WHO, World Hand Hygiene Day has been celebrated on May 5 since 2009. A lot of bacteria accumulate under the nails. About 840,000 different microorganisms live on the skin of the hands. Their number from fingertips to elbows varies between 2-140 million. The greatest danger is represented by salmonella, brucella, streptococcus, E. coli, Staphylococcus aureus and Shigella. Pathogenic bacteria cause diseases that require drug treatment. Germs get on the skin of the hands after contact with various surfaces in public places, banknotes, laptop keyboards, remote controls, etc. All family members need to be taught hygiene procedures, especially small children who learn about the world around them through tactile sensations. These are poetic lines by V. Mayakovsky, published in “Working Moscow” in 1927 with the aim of promoting cleanliness and a healthy lifestyle. Almost 100 years after the poem was written, the problem of maintaining hygiene rules is still relevant. Contrary to prejudice, the hands of people involved in physical labor are much cleaner than those of office workers. Women by nature tend to pay more attention to their appearance and body hygiene. However, their hands contain much more bacteria than men. The skin of the fair sex has low acidity and tends to sweat less. Therefore, more pathogens accumulate on women's hands than on men's. The international holiday encourages everyone to take care of themselves and others. To do this, you need to start washing your hands when you come home from the street, before eating, after handling raw foods, and after contact with sick people and animals. The skin should be cleansed with soap and warm water, towel dried, after changing a baby's diaper, taking out the trash, cleaning the cat's litter box, and other household chores. You should spend at least 20 seconds washing, taking care not to use an antiseptic unnecessarily, which will dry out the upper layer of the dermis. Experts talk about these and other nuances during events held for World Hand Hygiene Day.