DON’T FORGET TO WASH

 

History of Hand Washing 

In the 1840s, the significance of hand transfer of pathogenic bacteria was recognized when Ignaz Semmelweiss and Oliver Wendell Holmes asserted that physicians carried the agent of "childbed fever" (Group A beta-hemolytic streptococcus) on their hands. However, hand washing and disinfection to prevent spread of disease and illness was not practiced until the later part of the 19th century due to the efforts of Pasteur and Lister.

 

Effects

·         Diseases that can be contracted from not washing your hands range from the common cold and flu to parasitic diseases like E.coli, Giardia and Salmonella.

Prevention/Solution

·     If you think you have contracted a disease from not washing your hands, begin the habit of washing your hands immediately. This will help keep other people you are in contact with from contracting the disease. If you are throwing up, start a diet of bananas, toast, applesauce and plain rice and see a doctor as soon as possible.