October 15, 2021 By Sotera Wireless

Global Handwashing Day - October 15

October 15th is Global Handwashing Day, a global advocacy day dedicated to increasing awareness and understanding about the importance of handwashing with soap as an effective and affordable way to prevent diseases and save lives.

Global Handwashing Day is an opportunity to design, test, and replicate creative ways to encourage people to wash their hands with soap at critical times. This unprecedented time provides a unique impetus to institutionalize hand hygiene as a fundamental component of health and safety. The learnings from the past year have emphasized the need for collective action to address the historic neglect of hand hygiene investments, policies, and programs once and for all. As we enter a new normal, beyond COVID-19, our future is at hand. This year’s theme, “Our Future is at Hand – Let’s Move Forward Together,” calls for coordinated action as we actively work toward universal hand hygiene.

It was founded by the Global Handwashing Partnership and is an opportunity to design, test, and replicate creative ways to encourage people to wash their hands with soap at critical times. Global Handwashing Day is celebrated every year on October 15th.

It was first held in 2008 when over 120 million children around the world washed their hands with soap in more than 70 countries. Since 2008, community and national leaders have used Global Handwashing Day to spread the word about handwashing, build sinks and tippy taps, and demonstrate the simplicity and value of clean hands. Since then, Global Handwashing Day has continued to grow. Global Handwashing Day is endorsed by governments, schools, international institutions, civil society organizations, NGOs, private companies, individuals, and more.

Frequent Questions About Hand Hygiene

Handwashing is one of the best ways to protect yourself and your family from getting sick. Get answers to frequently asked questions about washing your hands and using hand sanitizer in community settings.

Scientific studies show that you need to scrub for 20 seconds to remove harmful germs and chemicals from your hands. If you wash for a shorter time, you will not remove as many germs. Make sure to scrub all areas of your hands, including your palms, backs of your hands, between your fingers, and under your fingernails.

What are the key times to wash hands?

These are CDC’s key times you should wash your hands:

Before, during, and after preparing food
Before eating
Before and after caring for someone at home who is sick with vomiting or diarrhea
Before and after treating a cut or wound
After using the toilet
After changing diapers or cleaning up a child who has used the toilet
After touching an animal, animal feed, or animal waste
After handling pet food or pet treats
After touching garbage
If your hands are visibly dirty or greasy

After blowing your nose, coughing, or sneezing, you should immediately clean your hands by either washing them with soap and water or using hand sanitizer with at least 60% alcohol.

How does handwashing with soap and water remove germs and chemicals?

Soap and water worked into a lather, trap and remove germs and chemicals from hands. Wetting your hands with clean water before applying soap helps you get a better lather than applying soap to dry hands. A good lather forms pockets called micelles that trap and remove germs, harmful chemicals, and dirt from your hands.

Lathering with soap and scrubbing your hands for 20 seconds is important to this process because these actions physically destroy germs and remove germs and chemicals from your skin. When you rinse your hands, you wash the germs and chemicals down the drain.

Should I use a paper towel to turn off the faucet after washing my hands?

CDC recommends turning off the faucet after wetting your hands to reduce water use. Then, turn it on again after you have washed them for 20 seconds, to rinse off the soap. If you are concerned about getting germs on your hands after you wash them, you can use a paper towel, your elbow, or another hands-free way to turn off the faucet.

Is antibacterial soap better than plain soap?

Use plain soap and water to wash your hands. Studies have not found any added health benefit from using antibacterial soap, other than for professionals in healthcare settings. In 2016, FDA banned the over-the-counter sale of antibacterial soaps that contain certain ingredients because these soaps are no better than plain soap at preventing people from getting sick and their ingredients may not be safe for long-term, daily use. Some studies have shown that using antibacterial soap may contribute to antibiotic resistance.

Is bar soap better than liquid soap?

Both bar and liquid soap work well to remove germs. Use plain soap in either bar or liquid form to wash your hands.

What if I have water but no soap to wash my hands?

If you don’t have soap and water, use a hand sanitizer with at least 60% alcohol. If you don’t have hand sanitizer or soap, but do have water, rub your hands together under the water and dry them with a clean towel or air dry. Rubbing your hands under water will rinse some germs from your hands, even though it’s not as effective as washing with soap.

Is it better to use warm water or cold water?

Use your preferred water temperature – cold or warm – to wash your hands. Warm and cold water remove the same number of germs from your hands. The water helps create soap lather that removes germs from your skin when you wash your hands. Water itself does not usually kill germs; to kill germs, water would need to be hot enough to scald your hands.

What if the water is dirty or contaminated?

Your hands can get germs on them if you place them in water that looks dirty, is contaminated (for example, during an emergency), or has germs in it from previous use, such as a basin with water used for bathing. That’s why CDC recommends using clean, running water to wash your hands. If you don’t have access to clean, running water, use a hand sanitizer containing at least 60% alcohol to get rid of germs.

If you don’t have clean, running water or hand sanitizer, you can still remove germs from your hands by washing them with clear water. You can also make water safe to use by boiling, adding the proper amount of disinfectant such as a mild bleach solution, or filtering it. Use the cleanest water possible to wash your hands. Avoid using cloudy water or water that may be contaminated with harmful chemicals or toxins, such as toxins made by harmful algal blooms.

If my utility has issued a Boil Water Advisory, can I still use tap water to wash my hands?

In most cases, it is safe to wash your hands with soap and tap water during a Boil Water Advisory. Follow the guidance from your local public health officials or water utility. If soap and water are not available, use an alcohol-based hand sanitizer containing at least 60% alcohol.

It may be possible that a person can get COVID-19 by touching a frequently touched surface or object that has the virus on it and then touching their own mouth, nose, or possibly their eyes with unwashed hands. Although this is not thought to be the main way the virus spreads, we are still learning more about how it spreads. Cleaning visibly dirty surfaces followed by disinfection is a best practice measure for preventing COVID-19 and other respiratory illnesses caused by viruses.

How to Observe Global Handwashing Day

Post on social media

Share on your Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, or other platforms to raise awareness about the importance of handwashing.

Get involved

Promote Global Handwashing Day in your community by ordering handwashing posters and fliers and posting them throughout the community’s public spaces such as parks and schools.