Hand-Washing Initiative, Study Highlight Health Benefits of Lathering Up

The AAFP has teamed up with longtime children’s hygiene advocate Henry the Hand to urge children to lather up frequently and thoroughly.

A link to the Henry the Hand Web site in the "Prevention" section of the Academy's Web site provides access to Henry’s entire curriculum, including downloadable songs, a coloring/activity book, games, posters, lesson plans and science projects for teachers, germ-prevention programs, reinforcement tools, and more.

The brainchild of Academy member William Sawyer, M.D., Henry the Hand also travels to elementary schools to meet with young students and "spread the word -- not the germs."

Granted, Henry the Hand is geared toward a young audience, but a recent two-pronged study from the American Society for Microbiology and the Soap and Detergent Association suggests more adults should heed Henry’s advice.

In August 2005, researchers observed more than 6,300 people in public restrooms at six public attractions in four major U.S. cities. Overall, 90 percent of women observed washed their hands before leaving, compared with 75 percent of men.

By contrast, in a telephone survey conducted the same month, 91 percent of adults claimed they always washed their hands after using a public restroom. Overall, 97 percent of women and 96 percent of men surveyed said they always or usually washed their hands after using a public restroom.

In the observational arm of the study, the greatest gender disparity observed was at New York City’s Penn Station, where 92 percent of women washed, but only 64 percent of men did. Atlanta’s Turner Field, home of the Atlanta Braves, was the site of the worst hand hygiene; there, 37 percent of men and 16 percent of women left the bathroom without washing. The cleanest sites were San Francisco’s Ferry Terminal Farmers Market and Chicago’s Shedd Aquarium and Museum of Science and Industry, where 88 percent of people washed their hands.