Global Handwashing Day: Awareness On Benefits of Handwashing Raised

On the occasion of the Global Handwashing Day, many people participated in raising awareness on the important benefits of handwashing. The act is even deemed the "do-it-yourself" vaccine to reduce certain illnesses.

Gathering important facts from the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Food Safety News reported that proper handwashing could lessen diarrhea illnesses by a third and respiratory diseases by a fifth. This is according to multiple research reports.

The rates of those illnesses are higher in underdeveloped countries. But it is important to take note that people can easily avoid cold, flu, norovirus cases, and other foodborne illnesses if they practice good hand hygiene and give importance to the benefits of handwashing.

Henry the Hand reported that over 70 countries were anticipated to celebrate the Global Handwashing Day. Among the participants were millions of children from five continents. Teachers, parents, children, government officials, and even celebrities around the world aimed to motivate millions of people to lather up to reduce life-threatening diseases.

Furthermore, the celebration is a way of supporting local and global culture of handwashing using soap. Likewise, it aimed to highlight the state of handwashing in different countries and promote awareness about the benefits of handwashing with soap.

While people wash their hands with water, many do not use soap. This is because soap is less accessible in developing countries. People tend to just use it for bathing and laundry. On the other hand, the availability of soap may not be a problem in the United States but handwashing is not an automatic behavior.

In the time being, 3.5 million children under the age of five are dying each year from pneumonia-related illnesses and diarrhea. The theme for the Global Handwashing Day promotes the slogan "Clean hands save lives", and through active involvement of numerous people including children, it aims to ensure a sustained behavioral change.

The Global Handwashing Day has been annually celebrated on October 15 since 2008. It was the Global Public-Private Partnership for Handwashing with Soap that founded it.