Stop making these personal hygiene mistakes - Food hygiene rules to live by

We’re all familiar with the basics of personal hygiene. Since childhood, we’ve all been taught how to wash hands properly with antibacterial soap, shower with body wash, and keep our hands sanitized while out and about.

Some of us, however, are better at putting these positive habits into practice than others. When life gets in the way and everyday distractions take over, it’s easy to let personal hygiene slip.

However, it’s important to remember that germs are everywhere, and without practicing good hygiene, they can wreak havoc on our bodies. We’re here to help you put those positive habits back in place, so you can avoid common personal hygiene mistakes and stay healthy.

Common personal hygiene mistakes

Bathing and showering too much

Your skin is the most exposed part of your body and collects a lot of dirt, sweat, oil, body odour, germs, and bacteria daily. Thus, bathing or showering at least two to three times a week is essential to help remove these impurities from your body, reducing the risk of infections and unpleasant odors and ensure healthy skin.

However, washing too often could do more harm than good, particularly if scrubbing your skin too hard daily. Excessive exposure to soap and hot water strips the natural lipids from your skin, causing it to dry and allowing easy entry to germs, which can result in skin infections.

Frequent or prolonged bathing can destroy the good microorganisms that live within the skin on your body. These microorganisms that live on our skin, collectively known as the skin microbiome, play a vital role in maintaining healthy skin. In addition, they act as a barrier against harmful pathogens and help to regulate our immune system.

When we bathe too frequently, we can strip away the skin's natural oils and disrupt the balance of microorganisms. This can lead to dryness, irritation, and even skin infections. Therefore, striking a balance when showering and bathing and maintaining healthy skin is important.

Forgetting to apply lotion or moisturizer

When you are late for work, you jump in and out of the shower and then gallop towards your destination. Unfortunately, by doing so, you often forget to apply lotion or moisturizer straight after showering.

Unfortunately, waiting to apply your lotion or moisturizer isn’t wise; applying it straight after your bath or shower makes your skin absorb more moisture and become much softer.

Pat your skin dry, don't rub it, and use your lotion or moisturizer to help lock in moisture picked up during bathing. The moisturizer should be applied liberally as a lotion over the body and a cream version on the face.

Not cleaning your fingernails

Our heads have been drilled with different techniques and the proper duration for washing our hands most effectively. But how often do you remember to dig under those fingernails, too?

Fingernails are often ignored in the typical hand-washing routine, but they can harbor even more bacteria than your fingertips. To keep fingernails clean, it helps to keep them short or a manageable length.

The longer the nails, the higher their chance of becoming a breeding ground for bacteria. Remember to lather the antibacterial soap or liquid hand wash under the nails to wash out all unwanted dirt, impurities, and bacteria when washing your hands.

Covering your mouth with your hand when you sneeze or cough

Coughing or sneezing generates airborne droplets (respiratory and salivary) into the environment that contain infection-causing microorganisms.

These droplets can be inhaled by anyone in your vicinity, who will contract various infectious diseases such as coronavirus, cold, flu, and urinary tract infections. The droplets may also land on surrounding surfaces, which, if touched, will contaminate your or other people’s hands with the same infection-causing germs.

Many people cover their mouths and nose with their hands when sneezing or coughing to block the release of these infectious droplets. As a result, the diseases can spread to other people and surfaces through their contaminated hands.

Instead, when you next cough or sneeze, use a clean tissue, towel, or the crevice of your elbow to cover your mouth or nose and reduce the risk of cross-contamination.

Discard the tissue paper immediately after use and wash your hands with antibacterial soap or liquid hand wash. If water isn’t available, apply an anti-bacterial hand sanitizer that kills 99.9% of germs.

Not washing or changing your bed sheets

Your bed sheets regularly collect dust, dirt, food particles, sebum, dead skin cells, impurities, and allergens. Changing your bedsheets is recommended when considering reducing these allergens in your bedroom.

Sleeping or resting on unclean bed sheets can lead to allergies, one of the causes of acne, and other health problems. It’s recommended that you wash and change your sheets once a week using an antiseptic liquid.

FAQs

Why is personal hygiene important?

Personal hygiene ensures good physical and mental health by keeping all parts of the external body clean and healthy. Without practicing good hygiene, the body becomes an ideal breeding ground for germs, leaving it vulnerable to infection.

What is the most important part of personal hygiene?

Effective hand washing is the most important part of personal hygiene. While other hygiene practices are also important, washing your hands is the most important and effective way to avoid infectious diseases.

What are some of the most common unhygienic practices?

Some of the most common unhygienic practices include:

Lack of hand washing
Not showering more often
Unguarded coughing and sneezing
Nose-picking or nail biting
Lack of frequent cleaning of frequently touched surfaces and objects