The world today is concerned much about hygiene due to the outbreak of the Covid-19. While the whole world is banning to move around, let’s take a tour of knowing the various types of hygiene to be practiced and the benefits of it through reading this article.
What is “hygiene” at all?
Hygiene defined as any practice or doings that you carry out to stay healthy and clean. Washing hands, coughing into your elbow and customary home clean up, all add up to good hygiene.
What is the difference between cleanliness and hygiene?
People usually connect cleanliness with hygiene and use it interchangeably, which causes confusion; but the latter is a term that has a broad sense. Commonly, hygiene refers to such practices that curtail the spread of disease-causing organisms. Whereas, cleaning procedures are more often the means to achieve hygiene, by removing communicable microorganisms as well as dirt etc. Moreover, hygiene encompasses the personal habit preferences from the least being washing hands, to taking bath, to washing clothes to trimming the fingernails. Moreover, it is also about the attention one pays towards maintaining the workplace and residence clean, which includes maintaining pathogen-free, clean restroom amenities too.
Categorically, hygiene is classified into body hygiene, personal hygiene, sleep hygiene, mental hygiene, dental hygiene, and occupational hygiene etc.
Considering the outbreak of Covid-19, the Government has been advising to break the chain of infection transmission, doing which the infection cannot spread. Here is an array of various general hygiene practices that will help breaking the chain of infection like Covid-19 too:
- Isolate or quarantine infectious persons or materials
- Use protective clothing and barriers, such as masks, gowns, caps, eyewear, gloves etc.
- Bandage and dress the injuries properly.
- Dispose medical wastes safely.
- Disinfect the reusable such as linen, pads, uniforms etc.
- Scrub up, and wash hands.
What are main sources of common infection at home?
- People – who are transmitters or are infected
- Foods - chiefly uncooked foods and water
- Household animals
- Places that amass stagnant water, for instance sinks and toilets
Good Home Hygiene
Infection can be an outcome from express transfer of germs from surfaces through hands or food to the mouth, nasal mucous or the eye, where 'hygienic cleaning' procedures should be adequate to get rid of pathogens from dangerous surfaces. Engaging in hygiene practices at crucial points will help to break the chain of infection.
Hygienic cleaning
- Meticulously rinse the surface with a soap or detergent in running water to eliminate pathogens
- Pathogen extermination is also done using waterless hand sanitizer; or by application of heat.
- Washing of clothes and home linens like towels and bed linen
- Swab hands and nails with soap and water or with waterless hand sanitizer.
- Carry tissues and make use of them to clutch coughs and sneezes
- Clear out tissues as soon as possible
- Clean hands by hand washing or with an alcohol hand sanitizer.
- WHO(World Health Organization) recommends hand washing with ash if soap is not available
IMPORTANT
Proper respiratory and hand hygiene while coughing and sneezing decreases the spreading of pathogens mainly during the cold and flu season.
Stay clean! Live Happy!