Skip to main content

Main menu

  • About Us
    • Leadership
    • Our Team
    • Vision, Mission and Values
    • Health and Economic Impact
    • Research Impact Video
    • Strategic Plan
  • Our Research
    • Research Focus
      • Brain Health
      • Cancer
      • Digital Health and Artificial Intelligence
      • Heart Health
      • Healthy Aging and Mobility
      • Immune System
      • Injury and Rehabilitation
      • Lung Health
      • Mental Health and Substance Use
    • Research Centres and Programs
      • BC Centre on Substance Use
      • Centre for Aging SMART
      • Centre for Cardiovascular Innovation
      • Centre for Clinical Epidemiology and Evaluation
      • Centre for Lung Health
      • Djavad Mowafaghian Centre for Brain Health
      • Immunity and Infection Research Centre
      • International Collaboration On Repair Discoveries
      • M. H. Mohseni Institute of Urologic Sciences
      • Ovarian Cancer Research Centre
      • Community Research Program
      • Emergency Medicine Research Program
      • Hematology Research Program
      • Skin Research Program
      • Other Research Focus Areas
    • News and Stories
    • Researcher Directory
    • Events and Workshops
  • Research Services
    • New to VCHRI
      • Working at VCHRI
      • Regulations and Training
      • Membership with VCHRI
      • Learning and Development
    • Starting Your Project
      • Research Facilitation
      • Awards and Funding
      • Grant Management
      • Operational Approval
      • CST Cerner
    • Developing Your Project
      • Clinical Trials Administration
      • Clinical Research Unit
      • Research Privacy
      • Financial Policies and Procedures
    • Additional Support
      • Indigenous Health Research Unit
      • VCH-VCHRI AI Hub
      • Communications and Media Relations
      • Study Recruitment Support
      • Innovation and Industry Partnership
    • Internal Awards
    • Clinical Research
    • Indigenous Research
  • Participate in Research
    • Reasons to Participate
    • Participant Stories
    • Find a Study
    • Recruitment Support

User menu

  • Log in

Breadcrumb

  1. Home
  2. Our Research
  3. News and Stories
  4. Ask an expert: Why is it anyone’s business whether I wash my hands or not?

Ask an expert: Why is it anyone’s business whether I wash my hands or not?

Stories Sep 8, 2016 3 minutes

Dr. Jennifer Grant explains why hand washing just makes good sense and helps keep all of us healthy, particularly in a health care environment.

Q: Why do I need to wash my hands after going to the washroom if I’m only momentarily in contact with my bathing suit area? Isn’t that the cleanest part of my body because it’s covered up all day?
A: 
The bacterial flora that we all have is different on different parts of our body. You should wash your hands after going to the bathroom because the bathing suit area has the highest level of coliform bacteria (from the digestive tract and excrement) than any other part of your body. And the fact that that part of the body is nice and warm and moist thanks to protective clothing keeps things at an optimal temperature for bacterial growth.

Q: Why should anyone else care whether or not I wash my hands? I’m the only one who’ll get sick if I don’t wash up.
A: 
That’s simply not true. For example, if you're serving food to your family, you and your family might get sick. Also, if you are sick, you can’t go to work and that costs everybody money. But for health care workers taking care of patients, hand washing becomes even more important. Many patients have compromised immune systems, and for all who have a different bacterial flora than you do it’s critical that you wash your hands. Your own flora can be dangerous to other people. We’re all different and it’s the introduction of new flora that tends to make us sick. There’s very solid evidence showing that health care workers transiently carry organisms that are resistant to antibiotics.

Q: Are antibacterial wipes, liquids, and gels as effective as washing my hands?
A: 
Hand-rub liquids/gels in and around health care facilities like hospitals have a good track record of being effective. However, there are very little data looking at widely available, commercial bacterial wipes. Perhaps in some contexts they may be the best option, but they are not proven to be as effective and should not be used. The two best options for cleaning hands are soap and water and the alcohol-based hand rub. If people don’t have time to wash their hands, the alcohol-based hand rub is a solid option – it’s faster and results in less skin breakdown for people who have to use it repeatedly. 

Q: I sometimes see people using paper towels or tissue to open bathroom doors as they exit after washing their hands. Isn’t that overkill?
A:
In your own home, that would probably be a little weird. However, that is actually a proper technique for health care environment where the dirtiest part of the bathroom is actually the door handle. So, it does make a sense to wash your hands and grab the door handle with a paper towel to protect you from all the germs belonging to people who didn’t wash their hands.

Q: Are antibacterial soaps better than non-antibacterial ones?
A:
At home, we strongly discourage the use of antibacterial soaps and antibacterial wipes intended for cleaning. They’re not necessary and a good washing with soap and water is adequate. 

Researchers

Jennifer Grant

Related Articles

Ask an expert: My hands are dry and cracked from washing them so often. How can I get my skin back to normal?

Scratching the surface to protect against microorganisms

Share:

  • Facebook
  • Linkedin
  • Twitter
  • Email

Get the latest research headlines in your inbox

Subscribe

Recent News and Stories

Type
Announcement

Celebrating the life and distinguished career of Dr. Marcel Dvorak

May 14, 2025
Type
Stories

More equitable representation needed in Parkinson’s research

May 9, 2025 parkinsons, patient engagement, women
Type
Stories

Gamified stroke recovery improves arm function

May 8, 2025 stroke, rehabilitation
See more news

Get updates!

Join our newsletter mailing list to stay up to date on features and releases.

Subscribe

Quick Links

  • News and Stories
  • Careers
  • Events
  • Media Enquiries

Follow Us

  • LinkedIn
  • X
  • YouTube

© 2025 VCHRI. All rights reserved.

  • Contact
  • Privacy Policy