[MSL]

How to Have Good Hygiene During the COVID-19 Pandemic and Always

Author: Geser Kurultaev

(A free e-book)

About the author: The author (Geser Kururltaev) is a philosopher who grew up in a family of doctors and nurses in Europe. Currently he's living in PRC and he's teaching foreign languages, producing short films, creating some websites and writing different poems, stories and e-books. He's a fan of Chinese martial arts, fitness and healthy life. That's why he is publishing this e-book with the great hope that this knowledge will help many people to survive and to be healthier.

                                     
   How to have good hygiene during the COVID-19 pandemic (and always!) ? Well, probably most of the educated people know that good hygiene is something good and that it may prevent a lot of problems! One of the reasons for so many diseases around the world is bad hygiene.
 And, if you read some of my previous books, you know I'm not wasting my readers time! So, I'll stick straight to the point! I'll tell you all I know and all you need to know! So, it's going to be a short, honest and straight book. That's why let's begin it at once!
1. Why so many diseases around the world are there because of bad hygiene?

 It's because of the viruses (like that novel coronavirus; COVID-19), bacterias and other pathogens. They're very small. You can't see them. And that's why it's easy for them to enter your body; to make you sick. Even some cancers are happening because of bad hygiene (viruses, i. e. oncoviruses). It's so simple: if you're not keeping good hygiene, you and the people around you, are risking to get more health problems.

2. Washing hands and face.

 The first and basic thing to learn is to wash your hands. Don't just make them wet! Wash them well! There was a kid, which parents seem to be not so hygienic and they didn't teach him how to wash his hands. He just thought that wet hands = washed (clean) hands. I had to teach him how to wash them normally; right.
 If you have no soap and/or warm water, at least wash your hands with cold water, but be sure that you're washing them right. Once you get this habit it will bring you many positives: fewer diseases, better hands' skin and even burning some calories (as other everyday activities that burn calories).
 When, in which cases, it's necessary to wash your hands? There are many life situations that warrant hand-washing!

 a) Probably you were taught from a young age to wash your hands after using the WC/toilet/restroom. So, don't forget about it.

 b) The handshakes. It is customary to shake someone's hand when you meet them or when saying "good-bye", but it may be a reason for spreading germs, viruses and other pathogens if you and/or the person you handshake with didn't wash hands. Just imagine right now he/she touched the ground or you touched a dirty dog. When you shake someone's hand, almost anything they have touched since the last time they washed is now on your hand. Just be sure to wash up after you shake someone's hand because handshakes transfer plenty of germs, viruses and other pathogens.

 c) The ATMs. They are one of those machines that can be used by thousands of people in a day. As a result, it's loaded with germs, viruses, etc. (Because most of the people do not wash their hands before they touch the buttons of the ATM.) So it's always important to wash your hands after using an ATM.

 d) When using public transportation (bus, tramway, trolleybus, subway, plane, etc.)
Public transportation is a normal way of life, especially if you live in a big city or when you have to travel to work in another town/city. It's necessary to hold the poles and/or the handles while the tram/bus/etc. are moving. But when you do this, you're also picking up many germs, viruses, etc. that could easily make you sick.

So, the way to prevent picking up any harmful germs, viruses, etc. is to wash your hands once you get off the vehicle. Always carry hand sanitizer with you in case you are not close to a washroom and a good habit is to avoid touching your face (eyes, nose, mouth, ears) until your hands are not sanitized (washed), i. e. during the time when you're in the vehicle, don't touch it, if you can't use sanitizer over there. (For example, if you can have a seat and sanitize your hands, it's good, you can touch your face, but if you can't sit or even when you're sitting and still have to hold something, then better wait until you get off.)

 e) The shopping carts and the shopping baskets. So many people use them every day. When you're taking one, probably it was used already by several guys before you. So, you just wash your hands the moment you leave the store and during your shopping don't touch your face (mouth, eyes, etc.)

 f) After picking up a medication at the pharmacy (and after visiting the pharmacy in any case) just wash your hands. Whenever you pay for something, such as vitamins or aspirin, maybe you have to sign for it using either the pen at the counter or the one attached to the touchpad. Both of them have not only been touched by thousands of hands throughout the month, but these hands have most likely been sick because anywhere that distributes medication also attracts a lot of sick people. Some of them touched already the boxes/bottles of vitamins that you're holding right now in your hands. So, it's reasonable to sanitize your hands as soon as possible.

 g) When someone in your home is sick make sure to wash your hands. This is one of the most obvious times to keep your personal good hygiene. Whether it's a father, mother, partner, grandparents, or friend when someone else in your home is sick (or you're visiting his or her home), it’s important that you take hygiene seriously (wearing a mask, sanitizing your hands, etc).

 h) Now let's talk a bit about the object around you -- remote controls, cell phones, etc. On hard surfaces, such as those, viruses can survive up to hours. Also, there are many other pathogens, as you know, not only the viruses, who are also surviving that long or more (bacterias, pathogenic yeast (microscopic fungus), etc.) So, in addition to sanitizing your hands, make sure to sanitize any of them, so you won't pick up those germs.

 i) Everything that you are taking outside with you -- purses, handbags, cellphones, etc. They are one of those objects you probably do not clean/sanitize nearly as often as you should. People set it down at the cash register or on a table in the bar, or on the sink ledge of the public toilets (and almost everyone else does the same). When you are touching your handbag, cellphone, purse, etc, you're subjecting yourself to anywhere these things were since the last washing/cleaning/sanitizing.
 One of the worse situations is when something is dropping on the ground and then the owner picks it up, and without any cleaning, continues to use it.
Make sure you sanitize your objects at least once a day and especially when they are in touch with something dirty like ground, WC/toilet/restroom, market, hospital (a place full of sick people), etc.

 j) The objects outside. Let's take an example with the restaurants' menus. They are not usually properly sanitized all day long, right? They carry plenty of germs, viruses, etc. (because before you other customers touched it and you never know who was clean enough; maybe right before he or she touched the menu he touched his shoes or some street dog/street cat, or some dirty market's vegetable) and since are eating shortly after touching a menu, you should wash your hands. Just wash your hands in the nearest restroom or carry hand sanitizer with you; it's easy.

 k) After touching a stray animal or even a pet, as soon as possible wash your hands! You know probably how many terrible diseases are beginning from the animals: echinococcosis, SARS, COVID-19, etc. These kind of diseases are zoonotic diseases (i. e. the ones which are transmitted to humans from animals). A friendly animal in your area might seem harmless, but you never know where it came from or what diseases it could be carrying. Any time you touch an animal, you should think that your hands are potentially very dirty! Wash or sanitize them at once!
 
 l) The doctor's offices, clinics, hospitals -- they're the same as the pharmacies: attract sick people. Anything you touch over there, from the bathroom doorknobs to the sign-in counters is loaded with germs, viruses and other pathogens too. Do yourself a great favour and always wash your hands after you visit these places plus take a shower as soon as possible, because you can bet some of the germs, viruses, etc. may be on your head, foot, etc. Better safe than sorry!

 m) I think that most people wash their hands after touching raw meat, but in case you don't, it's a huge mistake! Wash your hands every time after you touch raw meat

and even after touching raw eggs. If you wonder what exactly about the eggs, you may think about the salmonella disease. And, just remember it: the time you deal with any uncooked food, make sure to sanitize. A dirty, unwashed, full of soil on it potato may be the same as dangerous or even more than a piece of raw meat.

 n) After coughing or sneezing you should wash your hands, in order to prevent spreading illness. The same as we always want to avoid getting sick from others, we should think about how important to prevent infecting others with our own sickness is. As a safety measure, always cough into your arm and sneeze into a tissue. But if one

isn't available and you need to sneeze into your hands, make sure you head to the sink and wash up to prevent giving others your germs, viruses... We should be responsible!

 o) The raw meat was mentioned already. Well, let me add that if you handle raw meat on a plate, then put that plate in the sink, the bacteria are still there. The sink itself is full of moisture, which means it leaves plenty of room for bacteria and other pathogens to grow on plates while they pile up. So, just wash the plates, bowls, forks, spoons, chopsticks (if there are any) as soon as possible and then wash your hands.

 p) When you're touching some pretty flower or a tree. How do you know if right before you some dirty animal didn't do the same? Or some person with the contagious disease?
 So, immediately wash your hands after touching things out there (flowers, trees, grass, etc.)

 q) Wash your hands before and after using feminine hygiene products. When one inserts female hygiene products, it is always important that she wash her hands first.
 Otherwise, there is a risk of infection. Washing your hands keeps the pathogens away from "that area", which just might save your life.


 r) IMPORTANT MOMENT IN YOUR DAILY LIFE -- the products you take to your home probably are full of pathogens (viruses, bacteria, etc.). No matter is it a new mirror or a bottle of mineral water. It was put in many different places, including on the dirty ground; it was touched by many hands... you never know if some mouse or fly didn't climb it. So just wash, wash and wash all the things you bring in your home! You know - washing prevents you from getting sick, but it also prevents you from spreading anything.

 s) SOS! Save our souls (in this case -- "SOH!", i. e. "Save our health!") To avoid losing your health because of COVID-19 or many, many other diseases, remember the simple hygiene rules: avoid the crowds, keep the social distance, wear masks and wash, wash, wash (hands, mouth, nose, eyes and the things you have to touch like bottles of drinks, cans of food, etc.)

 That's all. I wanted this e-book to be as short as possible and as clear as possible because health is the most important. Yes, health is not everything, but without health everything is nothing.



 

- The End -

[SEO]

Something similar (or related) that a person shared in Reddit: "So yeah, for people who aren't aware, sometimes people who pick veggies, fruit, whatever, work under some really shitty conditions, for little pay. Sometimes, they don't have time to run to the bathroom, or even wash their hands. Always ALWAYS wash yo shit, even if it comes gift wrapped in plastic and stuff. Those onions go through some really disgusting conditions before getting to you, that's really all it takes is a good washing." (Author: asdaaaaaaaa) It was a comment about the news that "Red onions linked to salmonella outbreak that has sickened people in 31 states"