CoVID-19 and Personal Hygiene

 What is hygiene? Series of daily life practices, conducive to maintain a healthy lifestyle, promoting well-being by preventing occurrence and spread of disease is known as hygiene.

According to World Health Organization (WHO),

'Hygiene refers to conditions & practices that help to maintain health and prevent the spread of diseases' [i]

Importance of maintaining hygiene;

Good personal hygiene bears great importance in maintaining healthy social interactions. Keeping your body clean not only keeps your own self healthy but it is also important in preventing spread of infections hence protecting those around us too. The incidence of CoVID pandemic has highlighted the importance of personal hygiene and people around the world have adopted personal hygiene routine to stay safe from the spreading virus.

Personal hygiene is also important religiously. Cleanliness is paramount to worship in different religions of the world. These include Islam, Christianity, Buddhism and Sikhism which practice personal hygiene routine for performing their daily religious chores. Washing hands, performing ablution and bathing in holy waters has been taught and practiced in religious activities since many years.

 

How to start personal hygiene routine? [ii]

I've listed few easy and simple steps which you can follow to stay clean and get rid of all the harmful germs that lead to infections, illness and bad odor.

Hand washing;

Hands are one of the primary carriers of germs. This is because hands are constantly being used for greeting each other, touching surfaces, eating, playing or doing any type of work. Washing hands regularly will easily prevent illnesses such as flu, cough, common cold and GIT infections. It is important to wash hands at the following occasions:

·         Before cooking and eating food

·         Before holding a baby

·         After using the toilet

·         After coughing or sneezing

·         After visiting an ill person

·         After touching/handling animals

·         After leaving hospital

 

Dental hygiene;

Keeping your teeth clean and maintaining good dental hygiene helps in protecting the gums and teeth. It also helps in getting rid of bad odor and oral infections.

Always make sure that you brush your teeth at least twice a day and floss then regularly. Don't forget to replace your toothbrush once every three months, especially after having a dental infection.

Bathing;

Bathing daily with a good antibacterial soap will kill the bacteria responsible for producing bad body odor. Skin infections such as athlete’s foot could be prevented by thoroughly washing and drying the affected area.

Itchy scalp, dandruff and head lice can be avoided by washing hair regularly with a good shampoo.

 Clothing hygiene;

The buildup of dirt and germs on clothes could be prevented by using a good antiseptic detergent. Washing clothes of an ill person is important to prevent spread of infection by contact with the clothes.

 

The massive spread of CoVID has made hand washing and other personal hygiene activities compulsory for everyone. It is important to continue the habits we have adopted during the pandemic to contribute in the development of a healthy, infection-free global atmosphere.

References:

[i]  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hygiene#:~:text=Hygiene%20is%20a%20series%20of,to%20maintaining%20the%20body's%20cleanliness.

[ii] https://www.dettol.com.ng/personal-hygiene/healthy-body/the-importance-of-personal-hygiene/#:~:text=Good%20personal%20hygiene%20is%20very,protect%20those%20around%20you%20too.