Children need to understand why it is important to wash their hands, and they need the assistance of their parents or teachers to do the proper hygiene. Encouraging children from an early age to wash their hands will help to ensure that this practice becomes a lifelong habit.

        Good hand washing is the first line of defense against the spread of many illnesses, from the common cold to more serious illnesses such as meningitis, bronchiolitis, influenza, hepatitis A, and most types of infectious diarrhea. And to avoid these kinds of illnesses, every school should provide proper handwashing demonstration and practical advice so that children would have knowledge on simple practice of hand washing into everyday life.

         According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), if children don’t wash their hands frequently, they can pick up germs from other sources and then infect their selves. It means that they areat risk every time they touch your eyes, nose, or mouth. In fact, one of the most common ways people catch colds is by rubbing their nose or their eyes after the cold virus has gotten on their hands.

        Hence, by frequently washing hands the right way, germs will be washed away — such as bacteria and viruses — which have picked up from other people, through contaminated water and food, from tainted surfaces, or from animals and animal waste.

 

By: Maria Cecilia V. Mirania | Teacher I | Cataning Elementary School | Balanga, Bataan