Bacteria on the hands: why are they dangerous and why is it important to wash their hands not only during corona virus

Hand hygiene is an important measure to avoid the transmission of potentially harmful microorganisms and prevent the spread of infections.

World Hand Hygiene Day. Dirty hands are a risk factor for the spread of pathogens. Hand hygiene can reduce the spread of infectious diseases. We do not even suspect how many bacteria are on our hands! Therefore, it is so important to wash your hands not only during a pandemic due to corona virus.  

What bacteria are on our hands, how dangerous they are and how to get rid of them - we’ll talk about this. 

What is the danger of bacteria on hand: 

• About 80% of infections are transmitted through the hands and this is how pathogens of diseases such as: 
• Viral infections (influenza, acute respiratory viral infections, scarlet fever, chickenpox, diphtheria, etc.) are transmitted not only by airborne droplets, but also through shaking hands. 
• Intestinal infections (dysentery, jaundice, typhoid fever, etc.) Conjunctivitis 
• Barley.  
• Worms. 

What bacteria can live on hand: 

• Salmonella - some species cause acute intestinal diseases (salmonella), such as typhoid fever. 
• Escherichia coli - individual strains lead to severe food poisoning, can produce toxins that are fatal for children, the elderly, or immunocompromised. 
• Shigella - cause a number of infectious diseases, for example, dysentery. 
• Brucella - lead to multiple damage to internal organs, cause brucellosis. 
• Staphylococcus aureus is the most pathogenic type of staphylococcus for humans. It can provoke lung skin (acne, boils) to deadly (pneumonia, meningitis, sepsis). There are strains resistant to antibiotics, which significantly complicates the treatment.

A few interesting facts about germs: 

• According to statistics, three out of ten people wash their hands without using soap, just under running water (and sometimes in a puddle, a river. ⠀ 
• About 840,000 bacteria live on the hands. Mostly they hide under the nails and in the folds of the skin, which is why hands need to be washed thoroughly! ⠀ 
• In second place by the number of bacteria is hair. ⠀ 
• Clean skin of the hands is the key to health, because after simple manipulations with soap, microbes die within 10 minutes. 

Do not forget that clean hands do not attract microorganisms, and dirty hands become a platform for the propagation of pathogenic microbes that survive if hands are not washed. 

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