Why you must insist your kids wash their hands

by Sonny Jones | Health and Hygiene

The Bacteria on the Handprint of an 8-Year-Old After Playing Outside

A man walks into a restaurant, but as soon as he places his order, he dashes into the toilet. Others go straight to the toilet before coming out to place their order. People who have made a habbit of washing their hands before they eat know how much dirt they wash out of them each time. 

But for those of us who are still struggling to understand why we must, the above photo must be alarming to them, if hey find it represents the amount of bactria found on one palm of an 8 year old.

Published in Colossal, the author said though we know our bodies are home to countless million of bacteria, without seeing them with our bare eyes, it is almost imossible to comprehend just how much we have accummulated. 

The petri dish handprint was created by Tasha Sturm of Cabrillo College.  It vividly illustrates the variety of bacteria found on her 8-year-old son’s hand after playing outdoors.

The print itself represents several days of growth as different yeasts, fungi, and bacteria are allowed to incubate.

"It’s safe to say almost everything you see growing in this specimen is harmless and in many cases even beneficial to a person’s immunity, but it just goes to show why we sometimes it’s good to wash our hands," the author says.

Source: Colossal