Your hands are now covered in splotches of ink after changing your inkjet printer's cartridge. Unfortunately, the very soaps and even #happybirthdaysong wringing of hands underwater will also break down the barrier we are trying to protect," Dr. Adam Friedman , professor of dermatology at George Washington School of Medicine and Health Sciences, told Healthline.

Yet just 5% of people spent more than 15 seconds washing their hands after using the restroom, and 10% didn't wash their hands at all, in a study of 3,749 college students published in the Journal of Environmental Health in 2013. By properly washing your hands before you do either of these things, you will remove most of your concerns.

Hands are the primary carriers of dirt, viruses, and bacteria, as they can come into contact with so many different surfaces throughout the day. The Gallup research found that the Dutch are the least likely to wash their hands with soap and water after using the toilet, with only 50 per cent reporting that they do so.

Hand sanitizer is transportable and can be used almost anywhere when you are on the go, or if you need to sanitize your hands but aren't in close proximity to a bathroom. So far, viral goofs about the coronavirus have contained strong messages on everything from racism and wearing surgical masks to the risks of touching your face and shaking people's hands.

Sadly, that's about the average time most of us spend washing our hands - but it's less than the 20 seconds the CDC recommends. Then put the washing lotion into 30 centigrade water, and soak it for 5 minutes. A breakdown of each individual step for hand washing, as displayed on the poster, is shown in detail below.

First, wet your hands with warm or cold water and apply soap. Place your left fingers on the back of your right hand and scrub - and vice versa. And while it might be easier and faster to use hand sanitizer, that's not as good as good old hand-washing with soap.

Washing your hands for just a few seconds-the way most people wash their hands when they are in the bathroom-is largely ineffective. Perhaps the most crucial is regular, thorough, hand washing. Rub hands together. The best and easiest way of improving public health is hand washing.