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Home › Articles › Toddler Health › Stop the Spread of Germs

Stop the Spread of Germs

5 Easy Steps to Keep Your Family Healthy

By Harmony Cornwell

Pages:  1  2  3  4  

We are always teaching our children to cover their mouths when they cough, but how often do they wash their hands after coughing into them? If it isn't each and every time it isn't enough. Have them cough into a tissue and then dispose of it right away. If this isn't practical, Lisa Vermeer, a mom of two from British Columbia, Canada, suggests coughing or sneezing into the bend of your arm to keep the germs off your hands.

2. This Is the Way We Wash Our Hands
How much hand washing is enough? When done correctly, there is no such thing as too much hand washing. Proper hand washing needs to be done for 15 to 20 seconds. The CDC recommends that children sing the "Happy Birthday" song twice as they are scrubbing their hands to increase the chances that most germs will be washed away. Liquid soap is a better choice over bar soap, and when someone is sick, instead of using a hand towel it is better to use paper towels to dry your hands, then dispose of them after each use.

"If [we] keep up on [our] hand washing we can usually prevent the other children from getting sick," says Amanda Schippers, a mother of four from Brampton, Ontario, Canada. She has her children wash their hands when they come home from school, before and after meals, after coughing (even if they use a tissue) and of course after going to the bathroom.

3. No Sharing Allowed
This may go against most of our parenting instincts, but when one of your children is sick your kids should not be sharing – anything!


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Re: Stop the Spread of Germs by anonymous on 03/06/2009 10:55PM

Wow. My daughter's preschool started teaching this to kids with a new product called Germy Wormy. She was so excited about it she came home and taught me a thing or two which got me googling to find this article. Germy Wormy doesn't teach the sharing tip though. Great addition.

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